Beyond the Pixels
by Zelia Theb
Summary: Jou can't wait to play the latest net game with his friends. Who is this hot new female adventurer? Are they even female beyond the monitor? They say that people break out of their shell when they are online. Complete JouSeto
1. I: Login

Info: The YGO cast gets involved in a really popular online game. The game is based on one that I myself used to play, called _EverQuest_.

Disclaimer: _Yu-Gi-Oh!_ belongs to Kazuki Takahashi, _EverQuest_ belongs to Sony Online Entertainment, Radiant Eclipse belongs to me (It was the name of a guild I actually ran with a friend on _EQ_). The game is -based- off of _EQ_, but it is NOT _EverQuest_. Any similarity to GM staff names, zone names (Created since I've quit), etc, is purely coincidental. Same goes with any other ideas. No similarity intended..etc.

The names contained within, will most likely be taken from my story at fictionpress, so therefore, those belong to me as well (and there is a publish date to prove it).

:::WARNINGS:::

This story will contain shounen-ai, which is a romance between two males. There will also be vulgar language, violence (video game battles, real life fist fights), and possibly some random angst.

If these things bother you, please click the 'back' button on your browser immediately!

If you read, then review, to let me know what you think. Any flames that are a result of not reading the warning will be deleted or ignored.

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In an alternate universe, sometime after the Battle City tournament….

"Hey guys!" Yugi said to his friends as they crowded around his desk at school, "I just got this great new computer game!"

Jounouchi's brown eyes went wide. He slapped his hand down on Yugi's desk, excited, and exclaimed, "Awesome! Can we all play it?" To Jou, Duel Monsters was a lot of fun, but he was so tired of all the commotion that it caused. The school year was ending today, and everyone would need something new and exciting to do together.

"Yeah!" Yugi replied, "We started carrying a few video games at the store now, and Grandpa received a few extra in the shipment. You need a computer and the Internet to play it though…" His violet irises shifted back to his blonde friend, and he added, "But we have two computers at my house, so you can come over and play whenever you want to, Jounouchi!" Jou blushed a bit, even though his friends knew about his poor situation at home, it was still embarrassing whenever it came up in conversation.

"Sounds cool," Honda remarked, "What's it like?"

"Well, it's a part of a genre called 'M.M.O.R.P.G.'s, or Massive Multiplayer…Multiplayer Massive?" Yugi's eyes rolled up as if he was searching his brain. He gasped and blinked twice. With a grin, he exclaimed, "Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game!"

"You can customize your character to look however you want! You have to choose a race and a class, and depending on what you choose, you get different abilities. I made a character last night."

"How cool!" Anzu commented.

"Come over after school and I can give you the games. Then tonight we can play!" Yugi said.

* * *

Jounouchi was seated comfortably at a computer chair in Yugi's bedroom, gazing at the character creation screen of the game. Yugi was in the living room, on the other computer. The blonde read the monitor carefully:

Welcome to the world of Virei!

Please select a race!

"Hmm, a race?" Jou mumbled, scrolling through the choices, "Human is good."

Please choose a class!

Please select a gender!

Select a deity!

Fill out your personality!

Please choose a name!

Congratulations, jou-k01!

You've successfully created a character!

Yugi popped into his room to find his friend running his new character around in circles at the starting town of Laen. He placed a hand on his shoulder and said, "Okay Jou! Stop running around and stay there! I'll come find you with my character!"

Jounouchi was satisfied with his avatar. A fit human warrior with shaggy blonde hair and brown eyes, devoid of any facial hair whatsoever. He started off wearing a pair of brown cloth pants and a baggy sleeveless tunic.

"Hi, Jounouchi!" a voice came through the headphones. He didn't reply to the slender character, mostly because he didn't know how to. Yugi burst back into the room, and plugged in the microphone to the computer tower.

"You can just press this key and talk into here if you want, or you can type, but that means you need to open the chat window…hit enter after each sentence…" Jou wasn't listening to Yugi anymore. He just wanted to start killing monsters, and find his other friends.

"Got it Jounouchi?" Yugi asked, taking Jou out of his trance.

"Um..yeah, got it!" His spiky haired friend left the room again.

"Okay, join my group! Let's go find everyone else," the slim character said.

"Yugi, how do you know what everyone looks like?" Jou inquired. Yugi had a human character that was the same height as his, wearing a black robe, with purple eyes, and shoulder length maroon hair with yellow highlights. It wasn't _quite_ Yugi, but if you knew him really well, you could tell.

"I told them my character name and they already sent me a few messages when I got online," Yugi explained, "Just follow me! They've all made characters that start off in this town too."

"Okay," Jounouchi followed. The town reminded him of pictures from his textbook on colonial America.

"And I'm not Yugi! My character's name is Zoerb!" Yugi corrected him, "I'm a level two wizard!" The mage placed a hand on his hip and pointed out, "Just look at your screen!"

"Oh," the warrior sighed, "I named myself Joukatsu…is it too obvious?" The wizard sighed.

"Everyone!" a girl's voice called out from behind them. She and two others walked out of the wooden door of a building, which had a star shaped sign hanging above it. It was the town magic shop. The three avatars ran over to Yugi and Jou.

"Teani! Renga!" Yugi waved to them, then bowed to the third character and said, "Nice to meet you, Duke!"

"It's me, Otogi!" the avatar winked.

Anzu, or Teani, had chosen to be an elf enchanter. Her character had a long green robe, a wooden crook, blue eyes, pale skin, and brown hair that passed her waist. Honda was also a human warrior, fully clad in leather armor that was adorned with gray fur, and carried a rusted broad sword. His hair was brown and mostly hidden by his leather helmet, and he had the deep chocolate eyes of his creator.

"I know what they are," Jou pointed to Anzu and Honda, "But what are you?"

"I'm a half-elven bard," he smiled. The character had waist length black hair, whose wavy locks rivaled that of Otogi himself. Messy bangs covered one of his green eyes, which were outlined in black, complimenting the deep chestnut tribal markings on his cheeks. His clothing however, was something else. Tight silver chain covered his entire body, except for somewhat of an open neckline that revealed most of his chest. Emeralds and rubies created sharp accents along the cuffs of his gauntlets, and a black suede belt barely hung onto his waist.

"They sure do make these characters…detailed," Jou commented, taking in the tight attire that showed _every_ muscle in "Duke's" body, including the bulge. His face felt warm, so he averted his stare.

"Let's go hunting, I heard a few high level people talking about some good newbie monsters in the forest over there," Honda's warrior used his weapon to point toward the extremely dark and eerie forest, north of the town.

"A newbie monster? What does a newbie look like?" Jou asked his group. They burst out laughing at him, and Anzu even appeared to be rolling on the floor.

"A newbie is someone who just started playing and doesn't know a lot," Otogi explained through the laughter, "A newbie monster is a monster that newbies can easily kill to get experience, items, money, and levels."

"Oh…" the blonde touched his chin in embarrassment and then ran off to the forest with the others.

Please wait, Loading!

You have entered Laen Forest!

The group of five adventurers appeared at the zone line in the forest one by one. The sound ambience scared Jounouchi. He heard howling wolves, flapping wings, and random insects chirping. Everyone appeared to be turning their head around, studying the zone, except for Otogi. The bard pulled a small wooden lute out of an even smaller burlap sack which poofed out of nowhere, and began strumming the strings.

"What are you doing, Oto..Duke?" Jou asked, confused by the action. He checked down at his level and gasped; he was level ten!

"I've been playing this game for two weeks now, and I just learned this new technique that let's us run faster! So just set your characters to follow me and I will take us to a really good spot." The bard flipped his long hair as he strummed a melody on the lute. A white glow began to surround the group's feet, and suddenly they were flying at a phenomenal speed through the forest.

"Ahh!" Anzu screamed several moments later. Jou turned around, along with the rest of his friends, breaking auto-follow, and saw a giant black wolf nipping at the enchanter's heels.

"I'll save you!" Jou cried, swinging furiously at the monster, and missing every punch. It finally changed its target to him, and his health bar was decreasing rapidly.

"Let a pro handle this beast, m'lady," Otogi announced to Anzu. He swiftly uncovered a long dagger, and struck the wolf in the back. It fell to the ground with a horrible whimper of defeat. He spun around after the kill and gave a daring wink to his group.

"Thanks!" Anzu cried, dusting off her mud stained robe.

"Joukatsu! Don't you know that a level one doesn't have a chance of hitting a level five monster?" Yugi's wizard quirked an eyebrow accusingly. Jou hadn't read the manual _or_ listened to him at all.

The blonde warrior blinked a few times, then stood up angrily and said, "Hey, what was with all that 'm'lady' crap anyway!" He waved his arms wildly at the bishounen bard.

"It's called role-playing. It _is_ a role-playing game, after all." Otogi's avatar played with his black locks of hair, and pulled the lute back out.

"You don't even have your beginner sword equipped!" Honda told him. He had no idea that there was a beginner sword!

"Hang on, guys, I'll be right back!" the wizard announced. Two seconds later, Yugi came into his bedroom and pointed to a small icon on his friend's screen. He looked at his eyes, to make sure that he was listening, and said, "Click that, or hit this key, and you can see your inventory. Click this…" He pointed to an icon next the other one, "And you're character's equip screen comes up. Just drag equipment on there." Jou did as he was told, and soon his character had the same sword as Honda's.

"Thanks Yugi!" Jou cried. Yugi smiled at him, patting his shoulder, and then returned to his console.

Anxious to fight, Jou stared at his screen, then screamed. It was dark black with bold white lettering, which read:

You have been disconnected.

Please log in later!

"What is it?" Yugi stumbled into the room in a hurry. He glanced at the screen and said, "Oh, you must have been booted from the server. Hit this key and log in again." He walked away.

The look that Yugi gave Jounouchi was the same one that he got when he started playing Duel Monsters. That was the only time that he had truly seen such a cocky look on his friend's face, all the other times that he had seen it, it belonged to Yami. Sometimes he wondered how Yugi could stand sharing a body with that guy. Sure, Yami did seem to sort of shape shift the boyish body a bit, and his eyes were a hell of lot sexier to him, but his attitude rivaled that of Seto Kaiba's.

He entered in his login information, and kept receiving a connection error. He sighed and turned off the machine, and watched over Yugi's shoulder. He began learning a bit more about the game. Who needed a manual when Yugi is there to observe?

* * *

After giving up on playing the game earlier in the day, Jounouchi sat back down at the computer at midnight and logged in. He was given permission to spend the break at Yugi's place, so he and Yugi were sharing a bed. His sleeping friend seemed to be in a deep slumber, and didn't stir too much at the sound of the computer and the clicking keys of the keyboard.

It was time for him to find a group.

He explored the town for a bit, and stumbled upon the inn. Lots of adventurers of all different races and classes were littered about the lamp-lit establishment.

"That was one hell of a dragon!" a short and bearded blonde dwarf…woman announced to her group.

"Yeah! He dropped an awesome shield, too. Who won it?" a robed elf asked.

"Isidian did," a knight in (literally) shining armor answered. He studied the group's equipment in awe.

Not to mention, he studied the figures of the digital ladies that passed him. Especially the cute elf in the corner. She reminded him of the fusion monster "St. Joan" of Duel Monsters, mostly because of her look. He walked over to closely inspect her.

She had layered brown hair that fell neatly into place, hugging her head tightly, and barely touching her shoulders. Her blue eyes were a color that wasn't available to humans, and seemed to pierce him right through the monitor.

She was level five, yet looked about as high level as the dragon slayers he had just eavesdropped on. She had a breastplate and plate mail greaves, both the same light platinum color, white cloth boots, and a white hooded cloak that gracefully fell over her body.

Joukatsu was in love.

"Would you like to group?" she asked him, her gaze never changing. Her voice sounded like it belonged to an angel.

"Sure," he replied.

* * *

"Would you like to group?" he typed. Was he ever thankful for the built in voice simulator of the game. It would hide his true identity, and allow him to be able to play a game freely, without the stress of being the best. Plus, being a female character allowed him to leech free gifts off of all the male perverts out there. That was, after all, how he managed to get most of his armor and money.

"Sure," the blonde warrior replied. He seemed like he wanted to anyway, but didn't know how to ask.

Newbies were always so cute.

"Good," he typed, inviting him to form a group with his character, "I'm Nymphe."

"What does a Dragon Cleric do?" he asked.

"We worship the dragon deity, and use our blessed powers to heal the wounded." He enjoyed role-playing. It was such a change from real life. No school, no paperwork, and best of all, it made him forget his desire to show the world how great he was.

"Cool, goes good with me since I'm a warrior!" The human shot his gorgeous avatar a smile.

"Let's go to the Undead Caverns," the boy typed, "Dragon Clerics can also smite the undead, so my spells will be able to help us out there." He glanced over at his younger brother, who fell asleep on the sofa in his office. He added, "I was there last night. The skeletons have more money than the monsters in the woods, and not many low levels know about the place. We can have the whole zone to ourselves, most likely."

"Seems like fun, let's go!"

"Follow me, then," he said, moving the digital girl out of the inn. In no time, he was going to be level six, possibly even seven. He took a sip of his water, which was set neatly in the center of a coaster on his desk, and prepared for a very long night.


	2. II: Friends Online: 1

All additional characters belong to me, unless otherwise stated. They either came from my own characters in any MMORPG I've played, or from my story _Virei Xi_ at fictionpress. Again, I have publish dates and game accounts to prove such (Among other things).

Some quick vocab: (Skip if you've played an online RPG before, it's a long list.)

**NPC** - Non-player Character, or rather, controlled by the game program or server.

**PK** - Player Killing or Player Killer. One actual player killing another actual player.

**Ninja (loot)** - To take the items or money (loot) off of a monster that was killed by another player without their permission.

**Lag** - The result of a poor connection, or too many processes running at once on a computer.

**Named** - A monster that has a name that differs from other monsters of the same type. Usually the boss or mini-boss of a zone or dungeon.

**Mob** - Another name for monster.

**Train** - A string of three or more monsters, usually in pursuit of a (few) character(s). Normally results in an announcement to the zone, to warn other players. To be trained is to be "Run over" by the mobs unexpectedly, and either die, or get close to it.

**Raid** - As a noun, it is the collective group of adventurers that are working towards the same goal (ie. To kill a big monster that needs several people to do it, to solve a quest that requires more than one person, etc.). As a verb, it means the act of invading a zone to complete that certain goal.

**Guild** - A group of people that have the same goals, and want to be committed to completing them with others. Different guilds have different ideals, and different requirements to join them.

Thanks for the reviews, everyone! Keep them coming!

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"Kaiba's in the store!" Yugi announced to Jounouchi, who was lazily napping on the couch. He was wearing blue jeans and a white tee shirt. Yugi of course, was all dressed up as usual, even though he had no plans of leaving the house today.

"Oh, what does that jerk want?" he yawned, getting to his feet. Yugi had already disappeared. He figured he might as well see what the creep was up to.

Yugi was working the register in place of his grandpa. The old man had stepped out to buy something at a store down the road. The short boy handed Kaiba a blue bag that had some sort of book in it, and said, "Thanks for coming, Kaiba!" The taller one just glared at him in return and turned to leave the store. His black trench coat, of course, was defying gravity as usual.

"Hey! You jerk!" Jounouchi yelled at him, "Yugi gives ya good customer service, and you just ignore him? Why, I oughta…" He tightened his fist and shook it in the air before him.

"You're right, mutt," he turned around and pierced him with his icy orbs, "I should thank him for having the only store to carry this item in all of Domino." His voice was bitter and sarcastic.

Jou yawned and then ran right up to Kaiba, getting in his face. He showed him his clenched fists and and said, "I'm not a dog!"

"Well," Kaiba malevolently smirked, "You seem to have been sleeping like a lazy dog would, at noon, as a matter of fact." He grabbed him by the collar of his tee, "What's wrong, did you stay up all night chasing your own tail?"

"Grr," Jounouchi growled, shoving the snobby boy away from him. He was thankful that Kaiba let go willingly, being considerate enough to not tear his shirt at least. He stared him in the eyes and remarked, "Yeah, well your face looks like you've been up all night too! What were _YOU_ doing? Cuddling all of your Blue-Eyes White Dragon cards the whole time?"

"Tch," Kaiba grunted. He huffed and turned his back to the annoying boy, leaving the store. The jingle of the bells tied to it sounded like a triumphant fanfare in Jounouchi's head.

"What did ya sell him anyway, Yug?" the agitated and tired boy asked, yawning _again_.

"Some game magazine, I think," the very alert one replied, shutting the cash register, "I didn't really look because I didn't want to bother him." He brushed a neon bang out of his eyes, and stepped away from the counter.

"Ahh," he opened his mouth wide. He really was tired.

"Why were you up all night?" Yugi inquired, "Did I…" The door jingled, signaling that someone entered; "Make too much noise when we slept together?"

A gasp was heard. Jounouchi turned around, and saw Otogi standing with his jaw gaped open. He pointed ahead in disbelief.

"You…two?!" he exclaimed, "You two…you're…dating?! You guys…AHH!" Even his verdant eyes seemed to shake in place.

"What?" Yugi innocently stared at the trembling dice-kid. He blushed when he realized the double entendre of what he said.

"No! No!" Jounouchi's arms created an impervious barrier around him, "I'm staying with Yug over the break! I just didn't sleep last night! It's not what you think!" It was hard for him to explain it to his friend, mostly because his face was beet red at the thought of it. Yami's eyes flashed in his head, not to mention the sexy avatar of "Duke" when he stared at Otogi.

"Then why is your face so red!" Otogi teased. He couldn't hold it any longer, and began to laugh. He really was too cruel to his friends sometimes.

"So why are you here?" Yugi asked him.

He shrugged and answered, "I just wanted to stop by and ask if you two would play again today. I was running around last night and ran into Bakura's character."

"Ryou Bakura?" the blonde asked, "I didn't know he was into that sort of stuff!"

"Oh, you bet he is. You know how much of an introvert he is," Otogi fondled a strand of his black hair, "It's the perfect place for people like him to break out of their shell. He actually is level fifteen!"

"WOW!" the two other boys shouted in unison.

"Yeah, I know," Otogi agreed, "He has a dark knight. Looks pretty neat. He said that he would help us level more over the week if we wanted to."

Jou was excited. He thought of his hunting expedition last night with that girl, and smiled. Would she be on tonight as well? He hoped that she would group with him again. Nymphe was a great player. Her spells kept Joukatsu well healed, and when they actual found themselves in deep trouble, they had managed to use their chemistry to beat one of the named monsters of the dungeon. It dropped a silver sword, something that was much better than the beginner broad sword he and Honda both had.

"Well, I'm going to go log on now," Jou said, waltzing trance-like back into the house portion of the building.

* * *

Login Name: jouk01

Password:

Loading world files…

You have entered Laen!

Finally the server let him log in. Jounouchi was anxious to gain more levels with Nymphe today. Yugi was still in the store, working. He typed in a search command for people on his friend list.

_

> > Friends Online: 1

_

(Lvl: 8 Dragon Cleric) Nymphe; Zone:Laen (Click to send message)

"Alright!" he said out loud. He couldn't wait to see her. Joukatsu ran over to the inn where they had first met, and found her in the same corner, face to face with a short and ugly halfling archer.

"Come on, group with me! Pleeeeeezzzzz!" he whined.

"No, I don't group with hobbits," Nymphe responded. Her arms were folded in a nonchalant manner that seemed vaguely familiar to him.

"Come on baby, you know you want to group with this sexy haffer!" the short annoyance said. He wiggled his rear end and twirled around in a stumbling circle. Jou stared at the scene, disgusted. He had to do something, and soon.

"Archer's should be taller," the heavenly voice scathed, "And more honorable. Go away."

"But I'll need sum healin' luuuuv!" he informed her. That's it.

The blonde warrior stomped in to the corner and stood in front of his friend. He stood in an offensive stance and clicked the "Duel" icon, with the halfling targeted. Glaring at the tiny pervert, he proclaimed, "The lady said that she doesn't wanna group, now beat it!"

"Joukatsu, you don't have to defend me, I can take care of it," Nymphe informed him.

"I have to defend a maiden's honor, and the dignity of decent players," he turned his head and winked at her.

"Fine, I accept," the hobbit said. The duel prompt showed up on Jou's monitor, and the fight began. Other characters began to form a half-circle around the fight.

Jou readied his sword, waiting for the other to attack him first. He had to know his abilities before taking the offensive. After several minutes of nothing, and a small eruption of laughter, Jou yelled, "Come on, do something!" The hobbit grinned and shook his head, which angered him. After (not) thinking for a moment, Jounouchi clicked attack and started swinging his sword at the archer.

"Take that! Can't hit me with a bow at close range can ya?"

"Jou…" the girl behind him sighed.

An NPC guard charged into the tavern, and in one swipe, did two hundred damage to Jou's health, killing his character. Jou sighed and leaned back on the chair, thinking of how unfair it was for there to be an interference. He waited as his character loaded back into Laen. He popped in at the bind spot, wearing nothing but a dusty pair of cloth shorts.

"I suppose I have to run back to the inn and loot my body," he yawned, leaning back in the chair, and almost tipping it completely backward.

"Jou," Nymphe shook her head. She was sitting in a chair next to the corpse.

"That was lame," he said to her, looting his body, which poofed when all of the items were transferred back to him. He scanned the inn, searching for the halfling, to duel him again.

"He teleported out of here after you died," she informed him.

"Hehe, it was a good move too!" a troll, dressed in oracle armor added, "Don't you know that if you fight in towns, the NPC guards'll kill ya?" Jou tilted his head to the side. The troll just laughed at him.

"Well, do you want to group today?" Jou asked the cleric.

She looked to the side and said, "I suppose. I don't have much time to play, I have something important to do in real life."

"That's okay, I have to catch up to my friends," Jou said, "They are all level ten already." The two of them started their journey to the Undead Caverns, never communicating the fact that they both wanted to head there. They both just _knew_.

"I don't believe that we will be able to gain two levels in an hour," Nymphe relayed her thoughts to him, "We can try, though. I've scribed a new spell that can do up to fifty points of damage on undead creatures."

"Let the skellie slaying begin!" Jou bounced, "Do ya think that the named will respawn again?"

"I've read in this strategy guide that most non-quest lower level monster bosses have a respawn rate of five hours real time. So, if we have the zone to ourselves again…" she turned to smile at him, "Then we could probably catch him."

"Well, we better clear them quickly, before you have to go."

"I have an hour," she informed him, "It should be enough time." A satchel poofed into her hand, and she pulled out two blue potion bottles. Handing one to him, she stated, "Earlier today, some high level knight gave these to me. The effect on them is Running Spirit, so let's use them so we can get there faster."

"Alright!"

* * *

The skeleton fell to the ground, its bones making a funny clattering sound. It was Jou's turn to loot it, and he found a very strange item._

> > An Ancient Book: Page 405

_

Weight: .01

Size: Tiny

Effect: Doom

"What does the spell 'Doom' do?" Jou asked his partner.

"I'll look it up," she answered. A few moments later, she replied, "It is a spell that can cause instant death." A few seconds later, she said. "If the target is more than five levels below you, there is a one-hundred percent chance of it working. If the target is within five levels in any direction of you, the percentage is sixty. Six or more levels above you, the chance is reduced to forty, except for named mobs." There was another pause; "There is only a one percent chance of it working on them. You also can't use it to PK."

"What is PK?" the warrior asked. He was already level nine, and Nymphe had just gained level ten.

"Player kill. You can't use it in duels."

"Oh, sounds cool. Can players learn it?"

"No," she explained, "There are only two items in the game so far, aside from hidden ones, that have that effect. It says here that the items disappear after they are used, like a potion. They are also rare."

"Well, you take it then," Jou said, handing his friend the scroll. She reluctantly accepted it.

"Um…Thanks, but you don't have to give it to me."

"No," Jou thought for a moment, "You can't fight up close with monsters, because they can interrupt your spells. You might need it to get out of danger." He took a sip of his pop that was set next to the keyboard. He liked to help people out, even if it was just a computer game character.

* * *

"Um…Thanks," Seto typed, "But you don't have to give it to me." He had been receiving gifts all day. He really didn't need another item to fill up his inventory. He figured that he would take it anyway.

"No, you can't fight up close with monsters, because they can interrupt your spells. You might need it to get out of danger." It seemed like Joukatsu genuinely was concerned for his character's safety.

"Big brother," Mokuba burst into the office, "They're here, and waiting in the conference room."

Seto sighed, knowing that he probably shouldn't have played the game at the corporate office. He looked up from his laptop and told Mokuba, "Five minutes." The preteen nodded and left the room.

"I have to go now," he typed, "Real life awaits me."

He watched the human dig his heel into the cavern floor. The torch beside them made his hair appear slightly orange. After a few seconds of idling, he said, "Oh…"

Kaiba was hurt slightly. Had he really disappointed his hunting partner? He quickly keyed, "I'll be back later, around midnight."

"Awesome! I'll try to be on and we can hunt again!" Seto smiled, something that he found himself doing more often since he started playing this game.

Nymphe bowed, then sat down to set up camp, or log out. It suddenly hit Seto, to cancel the process quickly. There was one last thing that he had to do….

Joukatsu has been successfully added to your Friends List!

He restarted the logout process, and shut his laptop as he left for the meeting.

* * *

Thanks to Santurion2, nasako, mangafan6, Egypts, and Kumora Sakusho formerly Saelbu for all the lovely reviews!

To answer the main questions - This game is made up by me, but NOT made up by me. It is a conglomerate of games like this that I have played myself, but it is most heavily influenced by a game called _EverQuest_. So yes, these types of games do exist! If anyone needs a good reference of how the games work, the _.hack_ series is a great reference (However, I played _EverQuest_ for three years before I had even heard of _.hack_).


	3. III: Train!

Disclaimers are the same for all chapters.

Nevaeh is my character name, however, Bakura is not my creation.

Vocab:

**Hate list** - The list of all NPCs or characters that a monster has been attacked by. To wipe a name off a hate list, the character has to be killed (Forcing the character to zone), run into a different zone (again, forcing a zone), or the monster has to be killed. Monsters will attack players on its hate list.  
  
**Aggro** - Think Aggression. The more aggro a person has (as in, they've done the most damage OR they have a very high damage per second rate), the higher priority on the hate list they are for target.  
  
**Aggro Range** - The maximum distance between a hostile monster and a player, where the monster will detect the player and begin to attack it. Different for different monsters.**  
  
Bind** - Bind is a spell that resets a character's respawn point (Where they pop up after death). Spellcasters can bind anywhere, as they have the spell, but fighter types of any kind can only be bound to cities, towns, and villages. The default bind point for all characters is their starting town, until the player changes it themselves.**  
  
Emotes** - Think emoticons. Commands that a player can enter in order to see their character do a certain action or animation.  
  
-Sigh- Even though the quick editor has the indentation button, it won't save right, so the story format is going to hell.

Read, Review, Enjoy :)

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"Ahh! Train!"

Jounouchi, Yugi, Anzu, and Honda, were all standing together in a zone called the Frozen Plains, waiting for Otogi to show up. Jou watched as a figure approached at a terribly high speed, dashing for the zone line behind them. Pursuing the figure was what looked like a pack of dogs, and three beefy ogres.

"Ahh! Train!" the figure called again, whizzing by the group so fast that they couldn't see him. He zoned, dropping his aggro completely, but now the pack of monsters was within aggro range of Jou and his group.

"Run and zone everyone!" Yugi yelled. Everyone except Anzu made it. She was quickly killed, and sent back to her bind point…which was ten dangerous zones away. She had forgotten to do what the rest of them had done, and bind in a nearby ice village.

"Whew, sorry about that, everyone," the trainer apologized on the other side of the zone line. Everyone, save Anzu, was in a zone called the Blue Crystal Caves.

"Help," Anzu had typed in the group's personal chat window, all the way from Laen.

"Try to find a teleport," Honda typed in.

"Okay," she said.

Jou studied yet another finely detailed body. The trainer, whose name was Nevaeh, had his name set to "Anonymous", so that one couldn't tell his level or class unless they were good at eyeing armor. While he didn't know much about the game, Jou _certainly knew_ how to eye armor…

He could only assume that the elegance in front of them was a half-elf. He had very long and layered hair, nearly pure white, just like his skin. His tribal pigments on his face were silver, and his eyes were crimson. Nevaeh's armor was similar to Duke's, in the sense that it was extremely tight, but it was made of abysmally black leather. The one thing to mention was the black cape made of feathers which drooped down to his ankles.

"You killed our friend!" Honda accused him. Jou snapped out of it, and became angry as well.

"I'm sorry, I truly am!" The beautiful avatar's voice was very familiar to everyone.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late," Otogi strolled up, strumming his lute. He turned to Nevaeh and said, "Hey man! You found them already?"

The pale half-elf blinked and replied, "I did?"

"You mean this was purely by accident?" Otogi questioned everyone as he joined the group, "Well, I suppose that I did ask you to meet here, but I was expecting you all to be on the _other_ side of the zone."

"O..Duke? Explain?" Jou requested.

"It's Ryou," he stated.

"OH!" everyone exclaimed. They hugged him quickly and invited him to join the group as well.

"Sorry that I got you killed, Anzu," Bakura typed in group chat.

As everyone else started speaking to each other, Jounouchi flew off into space. He kept imagining his next encounter with Nymphe, and he couldn't help but stare at the characters Duke and Nevaeh. This game was giving him some serious issues. He quickly shook his head, trying to rid himself of the naughty thoughts. These people were his friends, not to mention guys.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'Greetings.'_

__

He quickly came out of his trance and typed a personal message back, saying, "Hey! It's only eight! I'm glad you came on earlier." He hit the enter key, and immediately regretted sending the message. It almost sounded as if he was hitting on her, and he knew that too many losers and perverts already did enough of that.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'You're…glad?'_

__

"Well," he scanned his brain for a way out, "We really work good together."

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'You don't have to explain. You are in the Blue Crystal Caves? I'll come meet you, I can get a teleport with ease.'_

__

"Awesome!" he replied. She didn't send anything back. He got involved in the group conversation again, and asked in the middle of it, "Um, do we have enough room to invite a Dragon Cleric?"

Yugi sighed again, disappointed in his friend. However, it _was_ Jounouchi. He placed a hand on his hip and responded, "Yes, we can have up to ten people in a hunting group!"

"Who is it?" Honda asked.

"Just a friend…" Jou replied, knowing that his old pal would tease him if he said anything else.

Honda bonked him over the head. It was too late, he had sensed him! He winked, remarking, "Just a friend, huh? Yeah right! You dog! You met someone already?"

"I'm not a dog!" Jou snapped. Only Kaiba called him that, and it hurt every time.

"Eer, sorry dude," the other warrior apologized.

"Good evening," a divine voice addressed them. It was Nymphe, looking as beautiful as ever to Jou.

"Hi, Nymphe!" Joukatsu exclaimed. He nearly tackled the other character to the ground with his running friendly embrace. She was swiftly introduced to the other players.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'You never said that there would be a group…'_

__

"Does that bother you?" he messaged back. He blushed a bit, and also felt a tad guilty. They did seem to have a strong connection, after all.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'No, it's fine."_

__

Jounouchi wasn't sure if she was lying, or not. After a few moments, she joined the group, so at least it wasn't a complete disappointment. Soon after, they all zoned back in to the Frozen Plains to wait for Anzu.

__

_Duke tells you, "Whoa, she is fricken hot.'_

__

_Renga tells you,"DUDE!!!!!'_

__

"Anzu just sent me a private message, saying that she doesn't think she is going to like this girl, Jounouchi," Yugi said, standing in the doorway.

"She gets too jealous," the blonde replied, not taking his eyes off of the screen. Yugi returned to the other room.

"I can revive her," Nymphe announced, staring at the lifeless corpse of Teani, "It is a level ten spell. It won't bring back the experience that she has lost, but she will be transported right to the corpse." She began chanting something, closing her eyes. Her perfect hair actually began to move, due to the force of the spell. Blue sparkles emanated from her hands, looking like tiny waterfalls that spilled onto the corpse. Moments later, Teani appeared on top of her body.

"Wow! That was so neat!" Yugi bounced.

"I have to sit and regenerate some of my magic energy back. According to the spell details, it takes one hundred fifty points to cast Revive."

"It's all right, while we hunt, I can protect you two as you regain everything!" Jou informed them. Both ladies smiled at him.

The hunt went on until a little after midnight. The statistics of the night were simple; everyone except Bakura had gained three levels. He had only gained one, because he didn't receive as much experience as everyone else did due to his higher level. Otogi had insisted on flirting with _everyone_ the entire night, so much so, that it was embarrassing to claim to know him. No one died, or even came close to it, though, because Nymphe was such an excellent player.

It became obvious that she was going to become a part of their regular group. Everyone worked so well with her. However, the connection between she and Jou was the strongest. After a fairly large battle, everyone had to rest, and no one could stand to fight. An ogre ran by and trained them, and the two of them single-handedly defended the group.

Jounouchi stirred in bed. His sleeping schedule was off now, and he couldn't help but wonder if Nymphe was still online, or if she was being harassed by perverts again. He carefully climbed over Yugi, and went back to the computer.

* * *

"I'm sorry about earlier," the warrior told him, "O..Duke can be a real idiot sometimes."

"Don't worry about it," Seto typed, "We are almost level fourteen because of that group."

"Are you sure? It seemed like you didn't want to group with them at first," Joukatsu said. He put a finishing blow on the ghost, and looted the body.

"Yes, your friends are…" Seto exhaled, wondering how on Earth he was ever demented enough to compliment people, "They are okay. We would not be this deep in the Undead Caverns if we had not hunted with them earlier." There, putting a logical spin on it made it _sort of_ all right to say.

"So, is it late for you? It's almost one in the morning for me," he stated. The brunette sighed. His partner was so naïve, but it made him adorable.

"This game has only been released in Japan so far," Seto told him.

"Oh, so it's late for you too!" the human laughed. He spun around and stared at his resting cleric, "Hey, stand up for a sec! I just found a whole list of cool emotes we can do. These things always look so cool!"

Why the hell not? Might as well be nice and let his friend play around. They did several various things to each other. Their characters burped, flicked each other the finger, stuck their tongue out, hugged, flexed…it was almost endless, and they never did get to all of them. Seto found himself cackling out of happiness, instead of his usual boastful laughter.

"What's this one?" the blonde said. Suddenly, he had put an arm around Nymphe's waist.

__

Congrats! Your screenshot has been saved in your Virei folder!

"Let's kill a few more ghosts," he said, trying to avert the situation. After just two days, he had just found himself wishing that it was actually _him_ in the game, receiving the slight embrace. He had to get these thoughts out of his head; Joukatsu _was_ a male character. There was a very small chance that he was a female in disguise.

"Ever wonder how you can kill a ghost?" Joukatsu said as he brought the next monster back for them to fight.

Seto grinned. It was yet another pointless conversation that the two of them were going to have, and he enjoyed it. He hit his spell hotkey, and Nymphe was casting the most powerful undead damage spell she had. The ghost was dead. He smiled, and typed, "That's how."

"That's not what I meant!"

"I know," he laughed to himself.

"So, will you play tomorrow?" he asked 'her'.

After going through his schedule tomorrow, he replied, "Yes. I have an important meeting at noon, which should end at about one."

"Okay, I will probably wake up around then…Oh, you work at a company?" he inquired.

Kaiba swallowed at the question. He really didn't want to lie to his friend, but he didn't want to give away his identity. He lied, "Occasionally I have to do presentations, but nothing too important."

"Ah, you must be much older than me then…Eer! WaitaminuteIdidn'tmeanthat…"

"Hmm?" Seto typed, unable to audibly understand the last sentence that the warrior babbled.

"Eer, I know you aren't supposed to ask a lady her age, or call her..older. I guess what I meant was that I am still in high school."

He felt relieved, a little bit. Even though he had just lied, it was nice knowing that it wasn't an old guy that he was nearly flirting with. He replied, "Do not worry. I'm not that much older."

"I guess that's a relief," Jou remarked, beating up another ghost monster. Seto used his heal spell, then finished it with a damage spell. He picked the corpse, only to find more gold.

"Yes, I know, we have a good connection," Kaiba commented absent-mindedly.

"Ya read my mind there!" he beamed her a smile.

"Have we cleared far enough to move ahead?" Seto asked. He was twirling a pencil with his fingers, starting to daydream. Or maybe he was tired. He wasn't quite sure _what_ was going on. As he waited for a reply, he stared at the bookcases along the wall that he was facing. Was he really gay? How could he think such thoughts after such a small amount of time? Is this why many people claimed online games were so dangerous? He checked his screen, and noticed that his friend had finally replied.

"I wish I could answer you, but I have to go now," he looked down, "See you tomorrow, okay?"

"Alright," Seto replied. He was hoping to stay online a bit longer, but maybe it was best to go to bed now, since he had that meeting tomorrow.

"You have that meeting tomorrow, so maybe you should hit the sack too, huh?" Jou chuckled, as did Seto.

They said their good-byes, and logged out simultaneously. Before shutting his laptop closed, he checked his Virei game folder, and set the screenshot that he took as his desktop wallpaper.

* * *

Thanks to Dan, Amarin Rose, Cherry-Wolf, Drakemar, Kioee Manioso, Glen, and Kumori Sakusho formerly Saelbu for all your awesome reviews.

This is one of my favorite experiments, so I am glad that everyone is enjoying it!


	4. IV: The Radiant Eclipse

Disclaimers are the same throughout the story.

Really long Author's Note: (Skip if you want but no flame reviews if you do) I'm having a lot of fun writing this. I decided that eventually, I'd want to add in some sort of invisible love triangle, mostly because it is obvious that Jou is bi in this fic (if you couldn't tell from his obsession with his half-elven friends). After a lot of thought (But not too much!), I've decided on a rather wacky coupling, just because I felt like it. It works with at least…one of person's personalities. You'll see. Just don't worry, it's definitely JouxSeto!

As I stated earlier, Radiant Eclipse belongs to me. Later in this chapter, Seto explains why the name was chosen. This is exactly what I told my fellow guild mates before forming Radiant Eclipse as a co-leader on _EverQuest_. Therefore, RE is mine. Moltaenya DMagmus, Heretyc, and Demise are also mine.

Some info - This is an AU based on the second anime series (that means no Death-T or anything like that). Basically, I didn't want everyone to run to America, but another reason is to mess with the Japanese school year a bit. I knew that Japan greatly differed from US/Canada in terms of the school year, but I didn't want to make it seem too much like an American highschool. All I needed was the school year to end in the winter with a longer break - it's symbolic.

Vocab:

Solo: To be able to kill or hunt monsters single-handedly. Becomes increasingly difficult as a character's level raises (to put emphasis on forming groups in the online community). Some classes are more suited for soloing in certain areas.

**Pulling**: Luring monsters from their spawn or wandering points, to the group's location on purpose. A good "puller" can usually draw single monsters to a group without training them. The higher in level a character or a group is, the more difficult it is to kill a single monster. It is preferred to exterminate one at a time.

Nuke: To cast a high damage spell on a target. Wizards tend to have the most "Nukes" of any class.

Pet: A summoned disposable creature. It will aggro anything that attacks its master. If the master is attacking a creature, but the creature has a different character in its target, the pet will not attack unless commanded by the master. Summoning pets requires components.

Own(ed/age): A slang term (as opposed to lingo) used to describe how something was easily dominated. Simple and easy slaughter of something would be described as "Ownage". To be "Owned" means to have been easily defeated.

Dazzle: A spell that only enchanters have. It holds on most monsters, and renders them immobile for a specific time rate (ie 15 seconds, 30 seconds…it increases with level). Once "Dazzle" breaks, the monsters go after the enchanters, and enchanters are a very weak class that cannot take a beating and live. Dazzle can break when the time limit is reached, or when another character does damage to the dazzle monster.

**--------------**

"Hey, get up lazy!"

Jounouchi opened his eyes slowly, trying to adjust to the daylight filtering into Yugi's bedroom. After yawning and sitting up, he noticed that Otogi was the one to wake him. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, and wearing all black. His headband was actually missing for once.

"So, Yugi slept next to you while you were just wearing your boxers?" Otogi remarked, staring at Jounouchi's bare chest.

"Uhmm… let me get washed up," he blushed, climbing out of bed and heading for a toothbrush. He returned two minutes later, to see that his friend was still sitting on the bed. He yawned, "Where's Yugi?" He searched for a pair of jeans, licking the toothpaste off the back of his teeth.

"He's helping out downstairs. Said it would be about an hour before he would be able to come back up," he stood from the bed, and walked toward the blonde, "Katsuya, we have to…talk."

"What's up?" There they were! He found a pair of jeans, crumpled in his bag. He reached down to grab them, but Otogi grabbed his wrist.

"I have…a slight crush on you," he admitted to Jou. Instantly, thoughts of "Duke" flew through his head. He even started to remember that dream he had.

"Umm…I'm not sure what ta say…" he replied. Otogi slipped his hands under Jounouchi's arms, startling him.

"You don't have to say anything," Otogi assured him, "Just do something to let me know what you think." He already had blonde hair running between his fingers, and his face was dangerously close to Jou's.

"Umm…why me?" was all that he managed to think of. Duke kept running through his head, playing that silly lute, and shaking that tone body around like nothing.

"You're so stupid that it's cute. And you seem like a lot of fun, so…" Jounouchi interrupted him with a kiss.

"I'm still mad about the dog suit," he pulled away to breathe, "And you know, you're a real playboy. I always thought you liked girls."

"I do," Otogi said, "And I always _knew_ that you liked both."

"You did?" How could anyone have known his deepest secret?

"I mean, you practically drooled all over Bakura and I yesterday, not to mention that you _totally_ wanted to glomp Kaiba during that last tournament." His deduction put Jounouchi in complete denial. Kaiba? What a jerk! How could their bitter hatred for each other be so misconstrued?

They kissed again, for five minutes straight. Hormones filled the room, and Jou was surprised that some sort of smoke detector hadn't been set off yet. He had his hands up the other boy's shirt, tracing imaginary lines around the muscles of his back.

"So, would you like to be my boyfriend, Katsuya?" Otogi asked during their second oxygen break.

A pang of guilt struck Jounouchi when he heard the official question. He had a sudden desire to turn on the computer and talk to Nymphe. He felt like he had cheated on her, even though they weren't even a couple. He gently pushed away from the slender boy and replied, "Lemme think about this, okay Ryuuji?"

"Sure," he grinned, leaving the room with a wave.

[A.N.- Tee hee!]

"OOPH!" Jounouchi sat straight up in bed. Yugi had plopped onto his stomach, waking him from his dream. He struggled to catch the breath that had been knocked out of him.

"Sorry, Jounouchi! I tripped on your bag and fell!" Yugi picked up his head from Jou's stomach, blushing.

"What is it?"

"Um…Jounouchi…" Yugi stared at him, "Was it a good dream?"

"Oh, hehe, yeah, it was…It…" he paused, realizing that his friend's stomach had landed right on top of… "Eerrr!!! Uhh…Yugi! It's not what you think…it's uhh." Jou continued to stutter, trying to explain to him that it _was_ a dream, and not his presence in that area of his body, that made it do what it was doing.

"Sure," Yugi's voice deepened slightly, "I believe you, Jounouchi." The small body slid itself up so that they were face to face, and it was then that Jou knew Yami had taken over.

"Uhh…Yugi?" he stammered.

"I'm not Yugi," Yami said seductively, setting the Millenium Puzzle on the floor next to the bed. He pressed their chests together, and the cold metal of the buckles on Yugi's shirt made Jounouchi jump. He narrowed his sexy eyes at the blonde, and kissed him. Jou tried to struggle out of it, but for some reason, his legs would not move.

"Oh, no!" a girl called out. The two boys stopped kissing and looked over to the door, seeing a brunette in armor. Tears fell from her blue eyes, and she cried, "How could you, Joukatsu! I thought you loved me!"

Suddenly, Yami was on his feet, and holding a Dark Magician card up in the air. He summoned him, somehow, and the monster smacked Nymphe over the head, killing her. Nevaeh entered the room soon after, dangling the Millenium Ring from his fingers.

"Ah hah hah!" the dark knight laughed, "Finally! We can have Jounouchi all to ourselves! But first, let's play this shadow game!" The room filled with an eerie black mist, and now all three of them were in a huge bed. The boys began to fondle Jounouchi shamelessly, and Nymphe stood from her spot on the ground, and started to cry.

"AHH!" he yelled. He was still in Yugi's bed, and his scream woke him up.

The punky kid rubbed his eyes. He was still in his blue pajamas. Yawning, he looked at Jou and asked, "Did you have a bad dream?"

"Yeah, I guess it could be called that," Jou replied.

"Okay, well it's only six right now, we should get back to sleep." Yugi lifted his head and moved it from the pillow to his friend's chest, to comfort him from his bad dream, or at least that is what Jou believed. He was already sound asleep again.

* * *

It's been two weeks since Jounouchi has started playing the game. He and his friends were all level thirty, with the exception of Bakura and Otogi. Nevaeh was pushing thirty-eight, and Duke was at thirty-five. They were grouping together often lately. The group, which consisted of seven now since Nymphe had joined them regularly, was loafing around the town of Laen. Joukatsu and Renga each had full suits of chainmail armor, Joukatsu had green, and Renga brown. Zoerb and Teani had different staves, and their robes, while the same color, were far more embroidered than their beginner robes. The half-elves and Nymphe hardly changed their own look.

"We should start a guild, so we can kill the big monsters!" Yugi suggested. It was followed by several comments of agreement.

"Who should lead? The person who is the leader has to buy the guild charter from the NPC in town hall, and has to be able to lead anyone else who joins up," Otogi said.

"You should," Yugi said. Again, everyone else nodded in agreement.

"How flattering! An awesome guild with an absolutely stunning guild leader…" Otogi's bard began to run circles around the others.

"How about a name?" Jou asked. This was going to be the hard part.

"Triumph?" Anzu wondered.

"Nah…sounds too lame," Honda remarked, "What about Victory?"

"Templars of Death," Bakura stated. Everyone looked at him strangely.

"How…morbid," the enchanter commented.

"Radiant Eclipse." It was one of the few times that Nymphe actually spoke to anyone but Jou. No protests could be heard.

"Where did you get that from?" the blonde warrior asked his friend.

"There are so many power guilds out there, that all have the same goals, and achieve them in the same way…" the cleric explained, "It's time for a new power to rise, and accomplish feats in a way that hasn't been done before. This is the Eclipse. The period of darkness." Hearing the angelic voice speak in such a poetic form always made Jounouchi blush. Nymphe continued, "We are the brilliance...the radiance, in the darkness. With the passing of the Eclipse, comes change."

"Then it's decided," Otogi announced, "We are going to form the guild Radiant Eclipse. I'll go find that NPC, and everyone here will be officers once it's formed.

* * *

"We've finally made it to the bottom of this dungeon!" Yugi exclaimed.

They were in the pit of a dungeon known as The Fierce Tower of Sorcery. There were several levels, all of which had a mini-boss, and other named monsters which had their own quests or rare items attached to them.

"We barely survived that last fight," Bakura stated, "But at least we got a key and some armor." He strutted around, flashing his new black breastplate. The bard soon joined him, showing off his new white-feathered cape. They began doing circles arm-in-arm.

"You two _really_ match now," Yugi sighed. The half-elves ignored him, and kept prancing around each other excitedly.

"Incoming," Honda announced, dragging a black robed wraith back to the group.

"Undead," Nymphe smirked, "My specialty." The cleric began to cast a spell, one which the group has never seen before. Red particle effects traveled from her fingertips and pierced directly into what _would be_ the heart of the wraith. It was immediately done for.

"Wow, you nuked the crap out of that thing!" Yugi said. His friends looked at him in disbelief.

"Yeah, we could totally own this whole level!" Honda added, "Everything here seems to be undead!"

"My turn, pulling," Jounouchi announced.

"Pull five." Jou stopped. Did Nymphe just ask him to pull five on purpose? Everyone else seemed to be shocked as well. Nymphe stood solemnly; "Pull five. Don't worry." Okay, he knew that meant business. He trusted what she said, despite the pleas from the other group members.

"Better to be safe than sorry," Bakura said. His dark knight began to cast a spell, and he summoned a skeletal minion.

"Wow, I didn't know that dark knights could have pets!" Yugi said. Everything with him was amazement.

"You can be really creepy for a shy-guy," Anzu told the silver-haired boy.

"Incoming, five!" Jou announced. He was getting beat up pretty badly by these monsters. There were two green ghouls, two skeletal warriors, and one wraith. He kept his faith in Nymphe; he knew that she would heal him as soon as he came in range of the spell.

He ran, and ran, and ran. Finally, he caught sight of the group, and welcomed the heal. The heal that Nymphe never gave him. He stopped in the middle of the group, with very close to zero health points, and began fighting one of the ghouls.

"Aren't you going to heal him, Nymphe?" the enchanter asked heatedly. She was getting nervous, because her dazzle spells were not working.

"No." Instead, the cleric began casting another spell, and the undead around the group were slain.

"You really had me scared there," Jou typed in a personal message to his friend.

__

Nymphe tells you, 'I know, but you trusted me.'

"Yeah, I did," the blonde responded, "It was still scary."

__

Nymphe tells you, 'Don't worry. I will always protect you.'

"I'll protect you too," Jounouchi told her. It was truthful. He silently wished that he could be zapped into the dungeon, in place of his warrior, and take her off the some desolate zone, just to be alone with her for real.

"What was that?" Honda asked, referring to the massive slaughter of five highly dangerous monsters.

"It is what is known as an Area of Effect spell. This particular one works against undead only." Nymphe sat down to regenerate some magic energy, while taking in the praise from the crushing defeat of the undead.

"Let's do that again!" Honda suggested, as if anyone in the group had thought otherwise.

"I don't think so," a sultry female voice stated. The group looked up and saw two dark elf ladies standing back to back, with their arms folded triumphantly.

Both ladies were barely clad in very revealing black leather armor. Their characters appeared different from most dark elves, due to their black hair. Most dark elves had white hair.

"Who are you?" Otogi demanded, not bothering to look at his screen for the information like the rest of the group did.

One of the elves, who had crimson eyes, stepped forward and said, "I'm Moltaenya DMagmus, a warrior of flame. You may have heard of me before."

"I am the dark knight known as Heretyc," the one with the silver eyes informed them, "And your guild is cramping our space. We were here first, and we've already cleared to the master of this lair."

__

Nymphe tells you, 'I've heard of them on the message boards. Molt is the leader of a high-end guild known as "Demise", and Heretyc is the highest-ranking officer. Moltaenya was awarded her last name in server event. She's the only player on this server to have a title or last name.'

"Oh, she seems pretty stuck-up about it too," Jou replied, "I know a guy like that. He's a real jerk." Just thinking of Kaiba made him angry.

"Let's leave then, guys," Otogi commanded them, "I don't want to cause problems."

* * *

Seto was tired. It was already two in the morning. The erratic sleeping schedule that he was on was taking its toll on his body. He needed a break.

"I won't be online tomorrow," he told Jou, "I have to take a break." The two avatars weren't fighting. Instead, they were laying down, side by side, on the decline of a grassy hill in a very safe and empty area. It was also night time in the game. He changed the view to first person, and watched the sky above them. It was very well done, and looked so incredibly real.

"What's wrong?" the warrior asked him.

"I am wiped out from my sleep patterns," he admitted. He covered his mouth to yawn, and sat back in his chair. That was another problem; he found himself so engrossed in his laptop monitor that his back was hurting from poor posture.

"I hear ya," his friend agreed, "My back hurts a lot lately, and I'm waking up too late. I might go to the park tomorrow and relax."

"I might go to the local park as well. It's a good idea." Seto smiled.

"I'd miss ya if I went online anyhow." Someone would miss him?

"You…would?" the boy keyed back. It was a bit shocking, but at the same time, it was a very pleasing sensation. He knew that if it were the other way around, he would probably miss him as well.

"Yeah, Impy, I would." Joukatsu had started calling him Impy last week. He found it cute, even though it was very different from his actual character's name.

There were several minutes of silence. Kaiba had drifted off, half-asleep and day dreaming in his chair. He woke up when he heard Joukatsu's voice once again through the headphones.

"To tell you the truth…" there was a short pause, "I like you. So of course I would miss you."

Seto wasn't sure how to respond. His hands were shaking, though he would never admit to it if he was asked. He just stared at the screen blankly, trying not to pass out. He was dizzy.

"Um, Impy? Did I scare you? Are you there?"

"I'm…I'm here."

"It's sounds strange, but it's the truth," Joukatsu confessed, "It's almost the ideal way to find someone…You see a person for who they really are."

"You don't have to explain," he interrupted, "I know." Seto took a deep breath, and contemplated what he was going to say next. He badly wanted to return the words, but then what? And what would happen when Jou discovered that he was actually a man? He had never done this before. Perhaps it was time for him to come out of _his_ shell.

"I like you too, Joukatsu." He had to type it three times before sending it. His fingers were shaking so much that he had made uncountable typographical errors.

"You're tired, I can tell."

"I really am, I should set up camp." Seto knew he wouldn't be able to sleep now. His heart ached to be held by his pixilated partner. It figures, that someone as cold as him would be cursed to fall for someone that he could never have. He would be reflecting on his life the entire night.

"Just wait a sec, I found a new emote." The blue-eyed boy changed his camera to third person perspective to watch the new animation. Joukatsu leaned in to Nymphe, and kissed her lightly on the lips.

* * *

Thank you to Seth-the-lonely-soul, mandapandabug, Casey Katemera, Drakemar, Elusia, Animefighter 6, Kioee Manioso, Glen, Cherry-Wolf, nasako, ColeyCarissa, BlingBling021, joey baby, Kumori Sakusha formerly Saelbu, and anyone else I've missed who reviewed.

To address some reviews specifically:  
You'd think it would be obvious that one of them was the other! Later on, it goes into why that is (I've written up to Chapter 10 already...the fic may end up finishing off at Ch. 11). Look up the Japanese verb "Katsu" if anyone wants to find a good reason (Though it wasn't my original intention to have that happen).

As far as my warning at Ch. 1 goes - I placed that there for two reasons; 1) My stories end up being very dramatic as I like to torture my characters; 2) Have to warn the homophobes; 3) Wait for later chapters ;)


	5. V: Tears of Friends, Tears of Jih

Disclaimers are the same for all chapters.

Xiin is mine.

Vocab:

****

**Rez**: Short for Resurrect, or Revive. (Revive is from an earlier chapter; Resurrect is the spell that restores 50% of experience lost in death).

****

**Add**: Short for addition, or additional. It is used as a noun most of the time. An add is when another monster decides to join in on the character killing fun, and was previously not expected to come to the fight.

****

**Taunt**: An ability given to warriors, knights, and dark knights. This ability has a set recycle time of a few seconds, and allows the user to generate more aggro, thus taking a monsters attention off of another player. It is especially useful for protecting spellcaster types.

****

**Hybrid**: A class that is actually a blend of two other classes. For example, a knight is a blend of a warrior and a dragon cleric, where as a dark knight is a blend of a warrior and an undead mage.

****

**Tank**: A fighter that has very high health and a good defensive rating. Warriors fall into this category, however, sometimes a well-played hybrid class, with good items to boost their statistics, can be considered a tank. The one problem with that is only the warrior class has the highest Taunt ability.

Info:

Pure spellcasters often have low maximum health points, and high magic energy. Their defense is not so good, because they aren't able to wear medium to heavy armor.

Warriors have the best max health, no magic energy, and a very high defense.

Hybrids are more of a support class. They can fill different roles when necessary, but don't have to adhere to one job, as the pure classes do.

* * *

"Yugi?" Jounouchi asked. It was eight in the morning, and the two boys had just opened their eyes.

"Yes, Jounouchi?" Yugi answered. The short boy was well rested, unlike Jou.

"I need to talk to ya about somethin' if it's cool," he sat up. He needed to brush the morning breath off of his teeth.

"Sure."

"I want to get washed up first, hang on," Jou said, taking off for the sink. Yugi followed him.

The boys returned to Yugi's room and sat on his bed before changing into their clothes.

"Okay, here it goes," Jounouchi inhaled, "I like someone, but I'm not sure what to do about it." If anyone could understand him, it would be Yugi. They were best buds, after all.

"Who is it?" the spiky-haired one asked.

"I can't really say…" Jou replied, feeling guilty. It seemed like he had just slapped Yugi in the face, making him believe that he wasn't able to be trusted. It wasn't like that at all, but it felt like it.

"It's Nymphe, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"It's okay to like someone online, Jounouchi, you get to see their personality that way," Yugi paused to smile at him, "The good, and the bad. People can hide behind the monitor, so their actions are without real life consequence." He took Jounouchi's hand; "Nymphe is a really nice person…" He dropped his gaze of the blonde's brown eyes, and instead stared at the masculine hand in his grip.

"Yug? Hey, what's wrong buddy?" Jou shook his hand in order to get his attention.

"I have a secret." Jou blinked, hoping that his friend would continue. All he did was stare down. He mumbled, "It's not mine to tell, but I have to. Otogi…he has started seeing Bakura."

Jou ruffled his hair, completely bewildered. He said, "That doesn't make sense. They hardly knew each other outside of school."

"I know, but they have. Otogi says that he is the perfect person to experiment with. It's sort of sad. I asked him online why he chose Bakura, instead of someone that he was closer to, to confide in. He said that he didn't care."

"That's low, but it's Ryuuji Otogi we're talkin' about. And who has a clue what's goin' on in Bakura's head." Maybe it would be okay to talk to Yugi about his feelings for guys? It seemed like he could handle it, and it would certainly make Jou feel a lot better.

"I just know…That if it was me…" Yugi squeezed Jou's hand tightly. He felt a tear drop splash onto his knuckles, and it weakened his heart just a bit. Yugi was really that torn up over their friend's relationship? More tears fell, and Yugi sobbed, "If it was me, I would pick someone close to me!" He let go of Jounouchi's hand and pressed his head against his chest.

The taller boy wasn't sure what to do, or what had set this off. He just gripped Yugi, trying his best to console him. He thought about running his fingers through his hair, but figured that would be impossible. Instead he just patted his back and asked, "What's really wrong, bud?"

The weeping boy lifted his head, and sniffled, "I'm sorry, I got you all wet." He used the arm of his pajamas to pat Jou's chest dry; however, the patting soon turned to gentle stroking.

"Yugi…" Jounouchi uttered, beginning to understand the situation. He made the mistake of not avoiding the next move. When he went to remove his short friend's hand from his chest, Yugi instead interlocked fingers with him.

"I would pick _you_, Katsuya…" he whispered, briefly pressing their lips together. He confessed, "Sorry, I've just wanted to do that for a while…Nothing has to come of it."

"Hey, I'm not going to play the game today," Jou told him, trying to get rid of the awkward tension, "I'm going to go to the park and relax. I haven't been outside in a while." He glanced at Yugi's violet spheres; "Do ya wanna come with me? I might just sit on a bench, or something." The sad boy nodded and they embraced for a bit longer.

* * *

It was sunny, and the rays of light felt warm despite the chilly breeze of the season. Yugi and Jounouchi were walking along the sidewalk in the park, before sitting down to relax on a wooden bench.

"Do you mind if I go look in that card store for a few minutes, Jounouchi?" Yugi asked.

"Go ahead, I'm just going to sit here for a bit," Jou told him. He watched Yugi run off into the store, and then averted his gaze to watch the people walk by.

That's when he noticed _him_. A tall person with a rippling blue trench coat was leaning against a guardrail no more than a few feet away. It was Kaiba, that was for sure. It seemed as if he hadn't noticed Jou yet, mostly because his stare was fixated on the people below him.

"Tch," Jou accidentally let out. Kaiba heard it, and turned his head slightly.

"Lost your master, puppy?" he asked, turning around fully to glare at Jou.

"Oh gee, figures, I come here to relax and see _you_," the blonde retorted.

"Funny, mutt, because I was just thinking the same thing." The grin on Kaiba's face made Jou want to wreck it. He and his friends had never done _anything_ to hurt Kaiba, yet he still treated them like they were nothing. He was so cold hearted.

"I don't have time for you today, jerk," he said, "I'm outta here." Jounouchi got off the bench and went to the card shop to find Yugi.

* * *

"Okay everyone! Let's welcome Xiin, the black hand, to our ranks!" Otogi introduced a half-elf with black eyes, tight black leather armor, and long sky-blue hair. He held two ornate daggers in each hand.

"You look like a blue Nev!" Jou pointed out, causing everyone else to giggle a bit, including Xiin.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'We should find a weapon that looks like an old man's cane, and a helmet that looks like a fur brimmed hat. It would suit Duke.'_

__

Jounouchi immediately burst out laughing at the desk. That was exactly what he was thinking, but he didn't expect someone like _Nymphe_ to make such a joke.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'A black hand will be a good addition, though. They have an assassinate skill at level thirty-five which allows them to do an extremely high amount of damage. The only trick is that they have to be behind the monster, like a backstab.'_

__

"Which means someone like myself or Renga has to keep the monster's attention," Jou replied, "Otherwise, when they use the skill, the monster will turn to face them. We not only lose control of the monsters, but the black hand can't use the ability again."

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'I'm surprised. You are a lot smarter than you act. I'm sure that Zoerb will be pleased that he won't have to tell you how to work with the new guild member.'_

__

"Now Jou…" Yugi's avatar began, "You know what this…"

"He is fine, Zoerb," Nymphe broke in, "We have grouped with a black hand before. It was a really good hunting party." Nymphe just lied in order to shut Yugi up, and it made the blonde laugh.

"Good!" the wizard smiled.

"Next weekend, I want to try going to the Magma Temple," Otogi stated.

"Seriously? Don't we have to be level fifty or higher to go there?" Honda inquired, speaking for almost everyone.

"Yes," Bakura answered, "However, by the time, we hope to be of that level."

"Why there?" Anzu asked.

"The mythical creature of flame dwells there," Nymphe replied, "He has only been defeated three times on this server since the game has come out. Guilds who have succeeded in slaying him have needed many players to raid the Temple. The record low on this server has been seventeen players, and a minimum of five deaths."

"Nice research, Nymphe," Otogi remarked, "She is right. I want to start studying this zone extensively. So I hope that we can all reach the proper level by then. If not, we still go in, just for the challenge. After a week or so of learning the mob patterns, spawn points, and aggro ranges, I really want to try killing that fiend."

"That will be impossible," Anzu said, "Only you guys are even close to level forty. The rest of us are still around thirty. And we only have me to dazzle and Nymphe to heal!"

"Teani is right," Yugi supported, "Healing a player that is high on a monster's hate list generates aggro exponentially."

"I never would have thought that someone so bad at math would say something like expo…exponentittally!" Jounouchi yelled into the other room. Yugi laughed loudly when he heard his friend butcher the word.

"Well, that is why we have to try," Otogi stated, "I want to beat the record. If we come across some more players by then, then of course we can go for it, and have a higher chance of succeeding."

"You're a pretty good leader, Duke," Honda said.

"Of course he is!" Bakura added in with a smile. Jounouchi watched them emote hugs to each other and cringed, because of what Yugi had told him earlier that week.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Jou asked, "Zoerb, you have that teleport spell now, right? Take us to that one desert zone!"

"The Kanje Desert? It's dangerous there!"

"So what?" Honda remarked. The wizard sighed and began casting a spell. It fizzled out after three tries.

"Sorry, I don't have a really high teleport skill yet," Yugi apologized.

A satchel materialized in Nymphe's hand, and she pulled out a swirling blue pendant with a gold chain. She offered it to the wizard; "This should help. You don't have an accessory in that equipment slot yet anyway."

"I wanna see!" the blonde said, swiping it quickly.

_ Pendant of Ahknar  
Weight: .1  
Size: Tiny  
Race: ELF, DE, HUM, GNO  
Class: WIZ  
Effect: 20% to Transorcery_

"Wow!" Jou exclaimed, handing the necklace back to his friend, "Where did you get such a cool item?" Nymphe always had the weirdest things in her inventory.

"Some perverted ogre gave me a rare item, that was for the monk class only. I traded it to a high level human monk for that."

"That's really nice of you, Nymphe!" Yugi cried, equipping the item. He began casting the spell over again, and warned, "Hang on! Here we go! I have no idea where the spell will land us, so be ready for a fight."

__

Please wait, Loading!

You have entered The Kanje Desert!

You have joined the group.

A Spirit Spectre starts to cast a spell.

Teani's skin boils, as flames encircle her body.

Teani has been slain by A Spirit Spectre!

"Whoa!" Jounouchi shouted.

"That was scary!" Yugi yelled from the other room.

"Bright idea, Joukatsu!" Anzu typed over the group chat.

"Um, add one," Honda said. Without an enchanter, Jou would have to focus on keeping one monster's attention, and Honda would have to take the other.

"Strange," Nymphe said, "These spectres are resisting my undead spells."

"Group heal, then," Otogi told her.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'I hope that you are ready to protect me.'_

__

Nymphe cast a spell that she had never used before, and the group's dwindling health suddenly raised. She then cast it a second time, making everyone but Honda and Jou at full health.

"Rez me!" Anzu whined through group chat.

Jounouchi growled and typed back, "Wait a second!" He then watched as a Sandstone Giant joined in on the fun, and all monsters began beating up the cleric.

"I can't get aggro," Honda explained.

"Me neither," the other warrior stated. The fight was actually making Jou's adrenaline start flowing. He just couldn't get the monster's attention, and he wanted to protect Nymphe.

The fight continued. Nymphe cast a spell that surrounded her character in a sparkling yellow barrier. It was a spell only available to dragon clerics, and it granted invincibility for twenty seconds. It could only be used once every two hours, real time, and generated an extreme amount of aggro. During this time, if she did any sort of fighting or casting, it would automatically fade. She smiled and looked at the dark knight, saying, "Go for it, Nev."

The half-elf cast his own spell, causing the first Spirit Spectre to be surrounded in a thick mist of transparent skulls. It started attacking the other spectre immediately.

"You're one hell of a weird guy," Honda told Bakura as he slashed away at the giant.

"Where did Xiin go?" Yugi asked suddenly. All of his fire spells were being resisted, so he had to transfer to his ice spells, which weren't as powerful at his level. This allowed him to notice all of the work that everyone else was doing…or in Xiin's _apparent_ case, not doing.

The undead ended up slaying each other. The giant, however, wasn't even close to the halfway mark. It continued to use its large fists to smash the cleric, making such wonderful grunting sound effects in the process. The invulnerability of Nymphe wore off, and she was close to death. There was only one pixel of red left in her health bar on Jounouchi's screen. It looked hopeless. He began smacking his Taunt hotkey, trying his best to save her, when suddenly the giant was the one left with hardly any health left. It started to slowly walk away.

"Nice backstab, huh?" Xiin said, having appeared behind the giant, "One thousand two hundred damage. A new record for me." Nymphe was right earlier; a black hand would be an excellent addition to the guild. Jounouchi smiled when he thought about it.

"I'll avenge you, Teani!" the angry and frustrated wizard suddenly shouted out. He took out his staff, and smacked the giant in the knee, doing a total of one damage. The giant fell face first into the sand, dead.

"Wow, that was something," Otogi laughed, "Let's find a spot to rest up after we loot these corpses. Take Teani's body and we can rez it in a safe place."

* * *

"Do you think that we will be able to reach level fifty by next weekend, Impy?"

Seto pondered the question for a moment. Was it possible? If he and Jou grouped alone every night, and actually hunted like they used to, then maybe. Lately, all they've been doing is chatting in relatively empty zones. However, it still wouldn't help their guildmates get up in level with them. Duke and Xiin were level forty, and Nevaeh was level forty-two. Everyone else was stuck at thirty-four, except Teani, who kept dying, and was bumped back to thirty-three.

"We might be able to catch up to Nev," Seto typed. It struck him, then, how they would be able to gain experience faster than ever. He hadn't heard of this method used before, so it was risky. He typed, "Actually, we could level quicker than that. We just have to find _one_ item."

"What item is that?" Jou asked. Was he a friend anymore? Or was he a boyfriend? Seto closed his eyes and exhaled.

"It's a quest item. If we have that, we can do the Energy Ring quest."

"Oh…No one has been able to solve that on any server, have they?"

"No," Seto explained, "The ring allows the bearer to regain magic energy points at twenty five percent of the normal regeneration rate. If I had that…" Seto smirked, thinking that this was the _perfect_ plan for power; "Then I could be unstoppable against the undead."

He continued, "The only problem is the rumors going around. The developers are considering ditching the quest in the next two patches, because the item is too powerful for the game. However, if anyone obtains the item, they aren't allowed to take the item away, only the quest. We'd have to solve it soon."

"I don't understand," Joukatsu interjected, "Unstoppable?"

"I have a spell that isn't very popular among dragon clerics," Seto said, "Because it doesn't heal as much health as higher level spells do. However, if anyone bothered to use it, they would see that a cleric with a high healing skill level would be able to cast the spell in less than a second. There would be hardly any delay. The refresh rate of the spell is instant. I could chain cast it…" The thought of such an interesting loophole in a game like this began to excite him. He cackled to himself before continuing his explanation.

"Or I could weave it in between an undead damage spell, that was area of effect. Instead of resting in between every fight, which only had a single monster anyway…"

"We could fight three monsters at a time, and rest every other fight, or possibly every third fight," Joukatsu finished. They really did think alike. The warrior asked, "So what is the name of the quest item? Where do we find it?"

"If anyone knew where to find it, the quest would have been solved," Kaiba scathed, "The name of the item is The Tears of Jih."

"The Tears of Jih?" the human cheered, "I know where a monster named Jih is!" Seto gasped as Jou continued, "You never get to see the inside of the dungeon when I am pulling monsters to our hunting spot. Well, there is a named ghoul in the Undead Caverns called Lady Jih." What a good boy he was! Seto folded his hands together, content with the situation.

* * *

A bit of clarification for Chapter 4: Everything right up until _"AHH!" he yelled _was a dream. Only one line at the end of that little dream sequence hinted at who the real person that had a crush on him was. I had different plans for Ryuuji. =)  
  
I hope that everyone's questions were answered with this chapter! Virtual candy to those of you who guessed right.  
  
Thanks to Kioee Mansioso, Casey Katemara, Cherry-Wolf, Elusia, mandapandabug, joey baby, Umi no Oni, Magna Dragoon, Amarin Rose, Drakemar, Coley Carissa, Animefighter 6, Kumori Sakusha formerly Saelbu, and others whom I've missed that have reviewed. A big thanks to those of you who have added me to your author alert or fav author list as well!  
  
I'm going to hold out on Chapter 6 - I'm aiming for more reviews before I release it, as I have already finished the story (on my computer), and want more feedback on the work. I'm not happy with how I've ended it (Ch 11), so obviously more feedback would help direct the outcome =).  



	6. VI: The High Priest and the Confession

Disclaimers for all chapters are the same.

-kills the buggy html editor that has tab indentations which refuse to work correctly-

Aylara is mine, Xziss is the name of a friend's character, and Aikido is an actual lizard monk character owned by my friend in _EQ_.

Vocab:

****

**Bank**: Server-side storage for a player's items and money.

****

**Patch**: A downloaded pack of files for a program that can either fix bugs, add additional files/zones/items/monsters, or take away such things. Usually done weekly or bi-weekly on a regular basis for most online games. Unexpected patches happen if there is a major bug released with the latest patch that needs immediate attention (ie character deletion or something).

****

**TokaGe**: A race of lizardmen. Their scales are all shades of gray, and their swimming skill starts off higher than the other races.

****

**Deathloop**: First off, these suck. When a character dies, they lose experience, and if they lose enough experience, they can lose a level (Which in higher levels, remember, take longer to gain. It'd be like losing your latest fanfic chapter completely without having had a chance to upload it.). In this game, you have to retrieve your corpse after you die, in order to get all of your equipment back. If you wait too long, the corpse decays, and you lose everything (which had taken a substantial amount of time to gain as well). The loop is where a character continuously dies on their journey to retrieve their first corpse, or if their respawn point was set in a dangerous place, and they die there over and over again. The looping of death results in a major setback. (I've seen players quit games before because of this factor).

:::**WARNING**:::

The consumption of alcohol is bad! Hanging around people like Ryuuji Otogi can really get someone into trouble, so I don't recommend it (even if he is one awesome bishie).

--------------

__

Patch Release Notes: v01.01.04

_-Fixed various spelling errors.   
-Fixed a bug in the Inferno Timbers which caused a player to immediately crash to their desktop if they attacked an NPC.   
_

_-Fixed the spell effects for the spell "Undead Charm" from Floating Skulls to regular particles. The skulls are only used for Doom type spells. _  
_-Added in several new tradeskills! Check your local NPC merchants for recipes, patterns, molds, and other various materials! Now players can bake their own food, and create their own armor. Many quests involving crafting or tradeskills have also been added. Please use the /bug command in the game if you stumble upon any problems. _  
_-Removed the quest for the Energy Ring. The item was overpowered and had the potential to cause class inbalancement._  
_-Added in several goodies to enhance the online community. Classes with the forage ability will now be able to pick flowers for their friends, and players with a lot of money, or a high crafting skill, can create personalized jewelry for no reason whatsoever. Anything else is up to you players to find! =)_

* * *

"It's a good thing that we finished that quest that night!" Jounouchi told Nymphe as soon as he popped online. He stretched his fingers, ready to level passed fifty with Nymphe. Tomorrow was the day of the big raid, and he and Nymphe were already level fifty, equal to Otogi and Xiin. Bakura was fifty-two, and was actually the highest level dark knight on the server. Post fifty, the levels became harder to gain, and only one person was beyond fifty-five. Everyone else in the guild was forty-three. That is, all except Anzu…

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'We have a problem.'_

__

Immediately, Jou took his character to the guildhall in Laen that they had bought from an NPC. Everyone was there, including the new players that they had just invited in, Aylara, Xziss, and Aikido.

Aylara was a half-elf, _much_ to everyone's surprise. She was a level forty-eight archer, wearing the classic half-elven silver chainmail, with layered black hair and brown eyes. The other two were TokaGe. Xziss was level forty-five, and an oracle. His tribal markings were red, matching his red eyes. His armor was decorated like that of an ancient witchdoctor. Aikido had black markings, and black eyes, which suited his class well. He was a monk, and only fought with martial arts. This only allowed him to wear minimal cloth armor, or possibly a lightweight robe. He opted for dark green garment. He was level forty-nine.

"I want to quit!" Anzu cried out. Jou ran up to the group, which was circled around Teani, and gave Nymphe a quick hug.

"What's going on?" the blonde asked, staring at Anzu's character. Teani was sitting on the floor of their guildhall, in absolutely nothing. Her character was only clad in what was considered the 'underwear' of elves; a tight green top and short green…shorts.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'Check her level.'_

__

Jounouchi did as told, and saw that Teani checked in at level forty. She was level forty-three the night before.

"Teani got caught in a deathloop. Her body fell into a lavapit while she was grouped with Renga and Zoerb earlier," Xiin declared.

"It was right near a monster spawn, so we killed the monster, so she could be close enough in range of summoning the corpse out of the lava," Honda added, "But the monster's respawn rate was so quick, that every time she got close to it, the monster would spawn, and attack her, since she was the weakest." It was no wonder to Jou how Honda did so poorly in language classes.

"And I kept falling in! Plus, I had bound myself right there so I wouldn't have to keep running back! I thought it was the smart thing to do…" Anzu sobbed, "I won't be able to raid with you guys tomorrow. Everything, EVERYTHING! It's all gone! It took forever!"

"I'll return shortly," Nymphe stated in the middle of Anzu's rant. She left the guildhall without a word to Jou, which bothered him. After debating for a few moments, he decided to follow her.

When he finally caught up to her, she was in the Laen Bank, trading with a very obese ogre in red armor. He looked to her and questioned, "Hey, what was that all about?" She turned her head slightly to face him, then walked out of the bank. Jou followed her again, wondering why she didn't answer him at all, and they ended up back at the guildhall.

"Out for a little elf lovin', eh Joukatsu?" Otogi teased, trying to lighten the overall mood at the blonde's expense.

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'That would be interesting.'_

__

Jounouchi fell out of his chair at the dirty insinuation. He got back up in time to see Nymphe handing Anzu's character a bunch of things out of her bags.

"Wow! Where did you get all of this?" Anzu cried.

"Some of them have been in my bank forever. The robe and the staff I just bought from an ogre that was sending me messages," Nymphe paused a moment, "With items like that, your statistics will be boosted enough that you'll seem like level forty eight. The only thing missing is the spells that you would get with the levels."

The guild was speechless. The items that Nymphe had just handed over without hesitation were items that other players would kill to have. Although auctioning the items online for en was a violation of the Electronic Users License Agreement, people around Japan would put up offers for such things. Jounouchi, of course, was touched by the whole thing. How had he managed to stumble upon such a fine woman, who _liked_ him, no less? He had thought that the world was full of Kaiba's, previous to meeting her.

Perhaps he really _was_ in love.

* * *

Nymphe healed a nearly dead Honda, and then Jou. That ring was paying off, and Jounouchi was glad that he had stayed up all night with her to get it.

"Fire Ghoul add," Yugi announced, while blasting ice spells away at the fire-breathing creature they had come to slay.

"On it!" Anzu declared, casting a dazzle spell on the lanky red monster. Brilliant particles surrounded the ghoul and stopped it in its tracks. It glowered at the enchanter dubiously.

Radiant Eclipse was in the Magma Temple. The final room of the temple was the lair of the mythical creature, known as the High Priest of Flame Itor. The room was mostly filled with lava, and looked more like a cave with all of the stalactites and stalagmites. There were various small stepping stones from the actual temple to the fighting area, which was a small rocky surface in the center of the lava pool. Taking up most of the walking space was a very large humanoid creature, which seemed to be completely ablaze in its own flames.

"Zoerb, get closer to him!" Otogi commanded, "Your spells are causing too much aggro and he will move from his spot to attack you. Everything will be thrown off!"

"Okay," Yugi said, moving his dark robed wizard closer to everyone else.

"I need a.." Honda began to say, as Nymphe's healing spell landed on him, "..Heal." He swung his two handed sword at the knee of the monster.

"He's almost dead!" Jounouchi shouted. The lifebar of the creature was down to fourteen percent, but it kept attacking strong.

Teani re-dazzled the ghoul, and Bakura swiped his reaver at the large beast. Xiin was furiously backstabbing, while the fighters tried their hardest to keep the monster facing the right way. Xziss and Otogi had the jobs of protecting the adventurers, because the monster's flames were causing everyone's health to gradually decrease, in addition to the various other spells and attacks.

"Nice job, Nymphe!" Honda commended, "It's like you never run out of magic energy!"

"That's almost true," the cleric informed him.

"Yeah!" Jounouchi shouted loudly as the monster fell.

__

You have slain High Priest of Flame Itor!

You gain party experience!

"Kill shot!" he typed excitedly to his guildmates.

"Congratulations, everyone," Otogi smiled, his character strumming a group regeneration song on the lute, "We've just set a new record! I hope that everyone was taking screenshots to post on the message boards."

* * *

"We haven't hung out together in a long time, and this seemed like the perfect occasion!" Otogi clicked his glass together with Bakura's. The gang was in Otogi's place, the one right above his store, having a party to celebrate how well their guild was doing.

Jounouchi was wearing his usual, a boring blue tee shirt with boring blue jeans. Honda at least altered his clothing a bit; he was in a brown knit sweater and black jeans. Anzu was still in her usual tank top with a mini skirt, despite the cold weather. Yugi, well, Jou had no idea _what_ his friend was trying to pull, or when he had bought such a weird shirt. It was black, of course, and had two leather belts that criss-crossed in the center. The shirt had a huge chrome zipper right up the front, and black mesh sleeves, and all of this was accompanied by his usual pants and wacky accessories.

Bakura, he was a _completely different person_. He was becoming influenced by Otogi, that was sure. The black eyeliner was only _one_ of the dead giveaways. He started wearing tight black clothing, and buying biker bracelets. Jou wondered why kids often went through such drastic changes sometimes. Was it a cry for attention? Or was he really into that style, just like Yugi? At any rate, he matched his boyfriend almost exactly, aside from the hairstyle. They both had on long sleeved tees and pleather pants. Jou stared at them for a while, for no _apparent_ reason.

"It's been treating us a lot better than Duel Monsters did," Honda exclaimed. Jounouchi floated back into his own body, and noticed that everyone seemed to be a bit tipsy. Yugi and Anzu were giggling like schoolgirls over a celebrity. Bakura wasn't the least bit reserved. It was all very suspicious. The blonde stared into his own drink, having not taken a single sip of it yet, and tapped the sides of the glass, causing ripples to form.

He set it down on the coffee table, and tapped on Otogi's shoulder to get his attention away from Bakura. The albino took that as some sort of cue to start annoying Honda. He started poking at the brunette's cheek and was doing everything _but_ groping him, causing Honda to be nervous. The outgoing boy quirked an eyebrow, and Jou whispered in his ear, "Okay, Ryuuji, what is everyone drinking?"

The boy stared at him with an intensity that made the blonde blush. There was something about him that made him so desirable, disregarding the fact that he was one cocky bastard. Otogi grinned, and answered, "It's a special drink to celebrate our teamwork, Katsuya…" Knowing that he made Jou nervous, he nuzzled the underside of the boy's chin with his fingers. Jounouchi's dream came flashing back into his head.

"Uhmm…" Jou swallowed, "You should tell people what they are drinking…Honda and I could handle it, and I'm sure you can too, but the others…" He glanced over to Anzu, who was attempting to show Yugi some dance moves. She looked like she was having a seizure.

"Maybe you should have some," Otogi licked his lips, bringing his face dangerously close to Jou's.

"Uhh…" Jounouchi mentally freaked out. Was his friend really about to kiss him, right in front of everybody? Especially his own boyfriend? This wasn't the way that he wanted to come out, but then again, would anyone but the two of them remember, or even care? Honda might tease them about it the next day. He opened his mouth to speak, taking in the taste of alcohol on Otogi's breath, and quietly protested, "I don't want to kiss in front of everyone!"

"You're not my type anyway," Otogi said, dropping Jounouchi coldly before walking over to pry his boyfriend off of Honda.

Jou got up off of the floor, his face still as red as ever. He walked over to Yugi, grabbed him by the arm, then turned to Honda to say, "You're in charge of Anzu. I'm taking Yugi home before he has too much." He led Yugi out of Otogi's place, and they walked home, or at least attempted to, in Yugi's case.

The next day, Honda and Jounouchi found themselves back at Otogi's place. They were accompanied by two very pale and queasy friends; Anzu and Yugi. It was about noon, which was relatively early for the late-night gaming blonde. The two sick ones were dressed relatively normal and warm, while Jou and Honda on the other hand went for jeans and a tee shirt. One would have thought that they had called each other before leaving for the oversized gaming shop.

"What's up guys?" Otogi asked as they entered his living room. His hair was down and messy, and he was just wearing black pajama pants and a black tee. It looked like he had just woken up. He stood behind a chair in the room, straightening his hair with his fingers, waiting for an answer. The semi-ill ones sat meekly on the sofa, but Jou and Honda seemed to be too angry to take a seat.

"You jerk! Do you have any idea what we went through last night?" Jou asked with his voice raised.

"Probably not as nice as what I went through," Otogi smirked.

"You got everyone here drunk!" Honda accused, "I thought that you were better than that, at least!"

"Stop yelling," Yugi requested, holding his palm to his forehead.

"You guys just seemed like you needed to have a little fun," the unreserved boy explained, "So we had some fun." The boy shrugged and flung his long hair behind his shoulders. His indifference made Jounouchi even angrier.

"Yeah, but then I was sick all night," Anzu muttered.

"Uhhn…" a quiet yet cute voice groaned. The group looked toward its origin and saw a very white Ryou Bakura standing in a doorway which seemed to lead to Otogi's bedroom. Jou noticed that he was even paler than normal, and in nothing but a pair of baby blue boxers. His hair was messy and untamed, like he had just crawled out of bed.

"What's with you?" Otogi turned to ask him. His question had an annoyed tone to it, as if he thought that the Bakura was about to start whining. Jou twitched a bit.

"I don't feel very well…and you are all being quite loud," the pallid kid answered.

"So go make yourself some coffee or something," Otogi rudely suggested, turning his back on Bakura. Jou clenched his hands up into fists. How could that guy treat his boyfriend so coldly?

The white-haired boy suddenly made a mad dash across the room, heading for the toilet. The tension in the room raised at the action. Jounouchi wanted to lunge forward and smack the nonchalant person in front of him.

"Great," Otogi complained upon hearing a retching sound, "I'll probably have to go and hold the guy's hair for him."

"That's the least you could do for the kid after getting' him drunk!" Jounouchi yelled, lowering his voice at his last word when he noticed Anzu and Yugi cringe at the volume.

"I can assure you that he _enjoyed_ it, _Katsuya_," Otogi remarked. He hesitantly began to walk toward the direction of the horrid sounds, but Honda stopped him.

"I'll go take of it for you," he said sternly, leaving the room.

"Good. I really can't stand all of that pukey stuff anyway," Otogi informed everyone.

"Gah!" Jou let out, "I can't stand that attitude of yours anymore!" He charged toward Otogi and punched him in his left cheekbone. Unprepared for the attack, the victim was knocked on his rear end. Anzu gasped at the sight.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Otogi shouted. He rubbed his face where a bruise was already beginning to appear. He stood up, not waiting for an answer, and shoved the infuriated blonde into the wall behind him. Otogi exhaled deeply and said, "You're making a big deal out of nothing." His eyebrows flinched as he heard more gagging.

"What's wrong with me is that you did something to your friends against their own will!" Jounouchi shouted. Still hostile about the situation and the recent shoving, Jou attacked Otogi again. The boy could not block it in time, since he was in the process of cowering away. Jou landed that hit in the boy's left eye, sending him backwards, but not to the floor again. Each punch left him feeling satisfied that Otogi was paying for what he did.

"Stop it Jounouchi!" Yugi protested as the blonde pummeled Otogi right there in the living room.

"What's going on in here?" Honda asked, having rushed back into the room with Bakura at all the commotion. The brunette immediately witnessed the terrible fight ensuing in front of him and dashed to pull Jounouchi off of Otogi.

"Honda!" Jou objected, "Lemme go!" He struggled to get his arms out of Honda's grasp.

"No!" Honda replied, "I know ya, Jounouchi. You're so angry that you could really hurt him!" Jou glanced over at the beaten boy on the floor. Otogi placed his hand on a nearby chair to brace himself up to his feet. He used the back of his other hand to wipe away the blood that trickled out of the side of his mouth.

So what if he hurt him? Anzu, Yugi, and Bakura had all gotten sick from his little stunt. Who knows _what _the weird dice kid was referring to when he talked about his boyfriend. It was despicable, to say the least.

"Get out," Otogi uttered, turning his back away from the group. Bakura slowly dragged himself over to his bruised boyfriend, not realizing the extent of his words.

"You too," Otogi scathed, "Everyone, get the hell out." He gave the undressed boy a nasty look out of the corner of his eyes. He walked back into his bedroom and tossed a heap of black clothing into the room, then slammed the door.

* * *

"I almost thought that you wouldn't be on at all today," Seto said to Jou, "You haven't been on in two days."

"Well, let me explain," the warrior said as he walked alongside the girl. They were heading in no particular direction; just aimlessly meandering around Laen.

"Go ahead, I'm curious," Seto replied. Curious? No, more like upset. He hadn't seen Joukatsu since he logged off after that raid. A few of his other guildmates had been online, but he wasn't all that anxious to see them. He couldn't bring himself to group with any of them unless Jou was around.

In between meetings and business, he had actually taken up blacksmithing. Seto found a few quests that rewarded components to create really high level cleric armor, so he'd been doing that for two days. If Joukatsu wasn't around, he'd have to be powerful enough to play by himself, though the thought of doing so made him want to uninstall the game itself.

"Well, I went to this party at my friend's place after that raid. My friends got real drunk and didn't know it, so I had to take one of 'em home. He can't handle himself too good, so he was sick all night, even though he didn't drink a lot." It still boggled Seto's mind as to why high school kids even got involved in such things. He listened to Jou continue.

"The next day I took care of him, and tried to explain what happened. All my friends ended up getting into a huge fight, which we finally fixed today," he sighed, "It was horrible. I'm so exhausted. I actually ended up giving one of 'em a black eye."

"The one that gave everyone the alcohol?"

"Yeah, no way I would just go around hittin' everyone." Jou let out a small laugh.

Seto relaxed in his chair, and checked the clock. It was one thirty in the morning. He wondered why he even bothered waiting up all day for Jou, when he could have had a good rest and taken care of some loose ends. Jou would have told him tomorrow, or the next day. It was no big deal, was it?

"You waited for me all day, didn't ya?"

Seto blinked. Does telepathy work through the internet? Of course not, that would be illogical.

"You said that you thought I would never show. You've been waiting around, haven't you?"

"Yes," he admitted, "However, I took up smithing to pass the time."

"Impy…" Joukatsu gave Nymphe a kiss, "That's so sweet of you, but you should get your rest if you need to."

It was only the second kiss that they had ever shared, even though it was just a silly animation of two digitized characters. The thought of that saddened Seto. It wasn't real, and it never _could_ be real. Once school started again, he wouldn't have time for the game. The realization crushed him; it was entirely his fault to begin with.

He was the one who chose to play the game. He was the one who chose to play a female character, in order to hide his identity. How would Joukatsu react when he discovered that Nymphe was actually a boy? Jou would probably feel so betrayed that he would never speak to him again. Perhaps it was Karma that had gotten him into this mess.

"Impy?"

"Yes?" Seto replied, having wiped the small amount of tears that had trickled down his face with the back of his hand.

"You're silent, and you've stopped walking. Do you want to go into the guildhall and talk?"

"Sure," he replied, barely able to use the arrow keys to follow his friend to the building.

"Impy?"

"Joukatsu," Seto began, having a difficult time typing for the first time in life, "We aren't real characters. The only things that we know about each other are imaginary and made up."

"That's only a half-truth, Nymphe," Jou hugged the girl, "We know our personalities, which is all that matters."

"It isn't," Seto spat back.

"You're right," the human admitted, "I want to hold you, but I can't. It hurts, but there isn't anything that we can really do about it, unless we were to really meet."

That sparked an idea in Seto's head. Of course they could meet! He had the money to go anywhere in Japan. There was just one problem, though.

"The truth is, I do want to meet you. I think that I'm in love with you, Impy."

Seto held his breath as he reread the chat screen nearly fifty times over. He began to get dizzy, from both the lack of oxygen and the shock of Jou's confession.

This was it. Joukatsu _had_ to know before it went any further. He couldn't admit his own feelings until he was certain that the warrior wouldn't run away from him. He was ready to be with a man, even if he had to hide it for the sake of Kaiba Corporation. Seto shook his head. Forget that. He would have nothing to hide if Joukatsu had the ability to look past his gender.

"There's something that I need to tell you, Jou," Seto informed him.

"What is it?"

"I'm…not who you think that I am," Seto swallowed his stomach, "I'm a man."

* * *

Thanks to all who have reviewed thus far. The fans of the story are becoming too long to list! I really appreciate all of the feedback so far...and I can assure you, your concerns and questions will all be answered in time. Remember, the story is already written ;), I'm just holding out because I can. It'll be a nice surprise for those of you who have anticipated certain parts. I must say though, that the suggestion to have Kaiba Corp. buy the game from the company is certainly an interesting one.  
  
When all chapters are up and posted, I'm thinking of making some side stories if I have time to in between working on my other four stories between here and fictionpress (if ya like violence I recommend Agent X3 or Virei Xi).  
  
Hope you enjoyed this chapter (and its evil cliffie).  
  
Zelia Theb  



	7. VII: Angels in Armor

Disclaimers are the same for all chapters.

Vocab:

****

**Bind Sight**: A spell that allows a player to see through its target's eyes (first person perspective only). The screen changes to that of whatever the target is (NPC, player, or monster) for an indefinite amount of time, until the target is dispelled or the player chooses to end the spell. The player cannot see their own surroundings, but can still chat with other players that are around them. Useful for mapping out dungeons.

****

**Buff**: A spell that enhances a character for a temporary amount of time. This time increases with level, and goes up to thirty minutes at maximum. Buffs can do all sorts of things, like increase the maximum health of a player, give them a barrier, increase their running speed, etc. A player can only have a maximum of ten spell effects at one time, and the same spell cannot be cast twice to get twice the effect (this is stacking).

:::**WARNING**:::

It gets pretty angsty from here on in…I think.

****

--------------

"You're…a guy," Joukatsu repeated.

Seto felt as if he was about to be sick. Normally, he could withstand such stress. He's looked fear right in the eyes and told it to go to hell during any sort of dueling situation. It was because he had control. He knew what the other person was thinking, and what they were up to, even if he couldn't stop it. Knowledge made his mind at ease, and allowed him to control a small portion of the situation.

There was nothing like that here. He couldn't use his money to buy love. He couldn't use his power to force it. The one thing he had was hope, and that hope was placed in the one thing that he couldn't control.

No one was around. Mokuba was asleep, and the lights were off, even though it was bad for his eyes. He succumbed to his tears, and prepared to give in to defeat soon.

* * *

Jounouchi inhaled heavy breaths. He had pretty much just told a girl that he loved her, for the first time, and that girl ended up revealing her deepest secret; she was a he. Did that matter to him? Would it be a problem for him to start seeing an older guy? He'd have to keep it a secret from his father, but that wouldn't be too much a problem.

Nymphe was an angel, in game and out. It didn't matter.

"I'm still in love with you," Jou finally answered. Hopefully it had eased some tension on her…or rather, his part.

"I'm sorry," Nymphe apologized, "Please don't tell anyone."

"I won't," Jou promised, tears welling up in his eyes, "I just…I want to tell ya in person." He reached for a box of tissues on the far end of the computer desk to wipe his face with.

"I'm in love with you also, as hard as that is for someone like me to admit," she paused, "That is why you had to know. I'd like to meet you, in person. Where do you live? I can come to you."

Someone loved him? He had always thought that certain things were impossible. He was very lucky, to have had so many good things happen to him, despite everything that made him hurt. He had finally found someone to be intimate with, who would travel across Japan to see him.

The oxygen appeared to be leaving his body. Jounouchi felt as if he had just woken up from suffocation, because he was very light headed and dizzy. His limbs felt numb, like they had a million tourniquets tighten around them. Love was starting to feel like death.

"I..I live in Domino, but you don't have to come all the way here…we could meet in between, or I could come to you…or…" He was shaking, and weeping.

"Stop," Nymphe interrupted, "I live in Domino."

Jounouchi let out an accidental yelp. He glanced at Yugi, to make sure that he was still sleeping like a rock, and he was. If anyone believed in fate, it was Katsuya Jounouchi.

"It is ironic, that for so long I scorned the thought of fate, and detested the threads of destiny, but now it seems that these things truly do exist, as this seems to be more than just a coincidence." Jou wondered if the two of them were connected telepathically.

"Then…I want to see ya as soon as possible," the blonde told him, "You can choose when and where. I can wait, but it'll be hard to."

"There is a park that overlooks Domino Square. I have a lot of work to do over the next three days, but on the third night, if you are able to, we could meet then." Jounouchi knew the park; he had recently been there with Yugi.

"Sure, that third night is fine…what time?" Jou anxiously questioned. He would have to tell Yugi, so that he would be able to come back inside if it was past ten.

"Midnight," he answered.

"I promise that I'll be there, Impy. How will we know to find each other?" Jou wondered.

"I'll be waiting on the railing. Not many people go there late at night, which is good for many reasons. It will be okay," Nymphe assured the warrior.

"I trust ya. But if we don't know, then just look for the guy running around yelling "Impy!" really loud," he joked. He was incredibly nervous about what to say for the first time, but perhaps it wouldn't be that hard to break the ice.

"We should get some sleep," Nymphe suggested.

"Or try to," Jou remarked, "Get a good rest. I'll be there no matter what, even if I don't see you online between now and then."

"My stomach is a bit upset still, but I think I will be fine. Sweet dreams, Joukatsu."

"Sweet dreams, Impy."

* * *

"You're too late, the dragon's already dead," the dark elf Moltaenya stated, "Why don't you take your little guild to the newbie zones for a practice run, _Duke_."

"Yes, that would suit them quite well!" Heretyc agreed, narrowing her silver eyes at Otogi's bard, "You don't even have your cleric today, hmm. What a shame."

Radiant Eclipse was in a face off with Demise, in a zone known as the Scaletree Forest. Otogi had hoped to kill the legendary dragon that was said to spawn there only once a week real time, but they had arrived late. Jounouchi was secretly scolding himself for not waking up earlier to claim the spawn.

"So what? Xziss, Nevaeh, and myself would have been able to heal fine," the bard defended.

"Oh, please," Moltaenya mocked them, "An oracle's healing ability is sub-standard, not to mention that you would have died from the aggro of your healing song." She placed a hand on her nearly revealed hip; "Of course, had we known you were going to attempt something like that, we would have left the beast alive just to watch you be the first to die. Corpse retrieval isn't exactly easy if you can't _kill_ the dragon."

"Your pathetic excuse for a dark knight wouldn't have been able to heal fast enough. You would have lost his damage output because you can't cast and attack at the same time. Plus, he doesn't even have the skill that dark elves are granted, which would have helped some. That's why half-breeds shouldn't bother dabbling in the dark arts," Heretyc taunted.

"You're just angry because we defeated Itor in the Magma Temple a few days ago, and beat the server record," Honda argued.

"You were only able to do something like that because you guys used an exploit," the dark elven warrior retorted, "We would have reported the abuse of the game, but we figured it would be more fun to torture you a bit longer."

"We didn't use any exploits," Jounouchi finally chimed in, "There aren't even any exploits that exist in that room!"

"Your cleric clearly was using magic energy beyond the limit of her level," Heretyc accused them, "Our wizard had cast bind sight on a ghoul, and witnessed the whole thing. He took screenshots as proof. There is no way that a cleric could have a limitless magic energy pool!"

"You're wrong, there is a way," Jou interjected.

"Well then, kindly inform us, or else you might see certain pictures posted on the server messageboard," Moltaenya threatened, her arms crossed in impatience.

"Enchanters get a spell known as Recharge at level forty," he began.

"Yes, but that only increases magic energy regeneration by two points. It isn't a percentage," Heretyc stated in defense.

"You should let a man finish what he is saying, or else you might look like a fool," Jou remarked. He was proud of himself; it seemed like Nymphe's articulate use of language rubbed off on him. He continued, "There is an item that increases the rate by a percentage."

"There is only _one_ item in the game so far like that, and clerics can't even use it. Not only that, but the rate is only five percent!" the female warrior informed everyone.

"You're wrong. There is the Energy Ring."

Both guilds gasped at the mention of the item. Previously they had believed that no one had solved the quest before it was removed from the game. The thought of someone solving it and not saying a word was utterly ridiculous.

"You're lying," Heretyc said.

__

_Duke tells you, 'So that's how you guys caught up to me.'_

The blonde smirked to himself. What could they say to that? The item was soul-bound, which meant that when the owner died, it stayed on their body, so there was no risk of it decaying on a corpse. Nymphe really did have an advantage.

"I'm not lying," he responded, suddenly thinking rather evilly, "Why don't _you_ take _your guild_ to a newbie zone known as the Undead Caverns and ask Lady Jih yourself?"

"Tch…" Moltaenya grunted, "We're leaving." The two dark elves gave them scornful looks and walked through the nearby zone line.

Jou leaned back in his chair and muttered, "Impy's gonna kill me."

Yugi burst into the room, scaring him. His chair began to tip backward, but Yugi ran up to him quickly and caught it before it fell. He ruffled Jou's hair and asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, ya just scared me is all," Jou answered. He checked his monitor and noticed that Yugi had logged Zoerb off.

"Can you get off the game? We haven't talked in a while," Yugi pleaded with him. He said his good-byes and logged out. The shorter boy then draped his arms around Jounouchi's neck from his position behind him, and rested his head on the blonde's right shoulder. He asked, "We practically live together now, so how come you didn't tell me about that item?"

The taller boy became nervous. He wasn't sure what to say, or what was going through Yugi's head. Jou removed Yugi from neck so that he could stand up and sit down on the bed, where the other quickly joined him, sitting to his left. Yugi rested his spiky hair on Jou's shoulder, and took hold of Jou's left hand. The blonde was unsure of what to do; he didn't want to give Yugi the wrong idea, but he didn't want to upset him either. He just allowed it to happen.

"Nymphe didn't want to call attention to it, that's all," Jou finally answered.

"You really do like her, don't you. Enough to keep secrets from your best-friend."

"Yug, it's not even a secret. It's just an item in a stupid game, okay?" Jou assured him.

"If the game is so stupid, why do you play it? Why do you like a girl from the game?" Jou wasn't entirely sure of how to react. Yugi was not acting like himself; in fact, he was almost acting a bit selfish and jealous. He concluded that it must just be a part of teenager-hood.

"Fine, I'll tell you a real world secret then, okay buddy?" Jou sighed, "I'm going to meet…"

__

"Please don't tell anyone."

"…her. Tomorrow night. And I need you to let me back into the house, because it's really late at night." He looked to side and into Yugi's violet eyes; "Can ya do me that favor, bud?"

"Of course I will Jounouchi. I could never lock you out of my house, even if you didn't live here," Yugi actually smiled, which made Jou happy, "I'm always here for you."

"My other secret, which I want to tell you, is that…" Jounouchi exhaled, a bit shaky from the moment. If what he suspected was true, then this would break Yugi's heart. He confessed, "Nymphe and I have fallen in love with each other. We said so the other night." He hadn't heard a piercing shatter yet…

"Then I'm happy for you two!"

"You are?" the blonde blinked in relief.

"Yes, I want you to be happy," Yugi told him, "That's why I wanted you to stay here for the break, and play with all of us. So I'm glad." He paused a moment, and said, "Except I'm sort of mad that you and Otogi got into a really bad fight. You really didn't have to hit him that hard, you know that he's weaker than you."

"He got what he deserved. I did it for you, Yugi."

"I know," Yugi embraced him, then stood from the bed, "We should get ready to sleep. It's late."

"I'm with ya there," Jou yawned.

* * *

Seto read the screen and exhaled in disappointment. Joukatsu wasn't online, and it was midnight. His right hand reached for a blue and white coffee mug to his right and took the rim of it to his lips. He thought about taking another sip of the caffeinated beverage, but decided against it. He set the mug back down on his desk. Seto had started drinking coffee to keep him up late and not feel tired, but since Jou wasn't online, there was no point in having any more of it tonight. He figured that he could just play the game by himself and work on some tradeskills while the effect of the drink wore off.__

_Blog tells you, 'Can you rez mah?'_

The rich boy blinked. He always hated the internet lingo. Would it really kill these people to type things out the right way? He quickly switched his status to Anonymous, so that no one could see his class or level.

__

_Blog tells you, 'Ya there? Can you rez mah? I can pay.'_

"No," Seto finally replied, "I can't resurrect. You must be mistaken." He took his character to the forge in their guildhall. It was nice that he didn't have to share tradeskill items with the rest of the server population; it allowed him to be able to smith things faster.

__

_Blog tells you, 'M'kay. Sorries to bug ya.'_

Seto brushed a bang out of his eye. Before he walked into the building, he sat back in his chair and pulled the bang straight out from his head, examining it. It was longer than normal and nearly reached his chin. He contemplated keeping it that way, although the look would make him appear unprofessional and more of a rock star than a high-class executive. He decided to have it trimmed before the big night tomorrow.

__

_Nevaeh tells you, 'Hello Nymphe. I wasn't expecting to see anyone online this late at night.'_

Who was sending him annoying tells now? He double checked the monitor and was relieved to see that it was Nev.

"Greetings," he keyed in, "I am normally online at this hour, however, what are you doing online?" He figured that some small chitchat with his guildmate could pass the time. It wouldn't kill him to learn a bit more about them either; he couldn't hide at Joukatsu's side forever.

__

_Neveah tells you, 'I had a fight with someone and I can't fall asleep.'_

The cleric ran into the building as he thought of a reply. He might as well work on things while he was conversing.

"Oh, you were right outside!" Nevaeh excitedly said, "I logged out from here earlier in the day."

"I am just working on raising my blacksmithing skills," Seto explained.

"You really have a good character," the dark knight remarked.

"What are you going to do this late?" Seto asked, not bothering to thank the half-elf for the compliment.

"I'm not sure…I just don't want to go back into the other room, so I came out here to use the computer." He figured that his guildmate was referring to wherever he lived.

He placed the final piece of ore into the forge and clicked the combine icon. He failed, and that was his last piece. No more forging for the night. If he couldn't succeed in making the magic metal, then he couldn't make the magical chain, and he was all out of the special ore to create the metal with. It was too difficult to hunt the monsters that dropped the item by himself, and he wasn't expecting a failure.

"You can tell me about it if you'd like to, Nev," Seto said, "Except that you have to come help me gather some dragon ore from Inferno Timbers." He created a group and invited the dark knight.

"That's an awfully long run," the silver-haired half-breed commented, accepting the invitation to join the group.

"No, it isn't." Seto smirked to himself and thought about all of the things that he would not have if he _had_ made a male character.

"I should have known," Nevaeh laughed. Nymphe once again pulled out an imaginary satchel on the screen and pulled out a withered scroll; "You have that magic bag of yours. I suppose that one teleports us right to the Inferno Timbers?"

"What gave that away?" Seto joked. He rarely showed any sense of humor around anyone, except Joukatsu of course, which wasn't even often. He sat back and waited a few seconds as the two characters loaded into the zone, popping up right on the safe spot of the dragon ore camp.

The reason that he couldn't kill the monsters by himself was due to their incredible magic resistance. Although they were weak, he couldn't melee them because his weapon was only equipped for the statistics, not the damage power. He figured that he would have to find another dragon cleric weapon that he could use just for hunting alone. Another problem with the monsters was that they hit very hard for their level, and with their bash ability, they could momentarily stun a player. That spelled disaster.

"We can just sit and forage while my pet kills these," his guildmate stated, "I recently found a rare spell that gives my skeletons a very high defense, and they can't be stunned."

"Interesting."

"Are you certain that I can tell you what happened?"

"Yes." Seto relaxed in his chair again, clicking the forage icon every few seconds.

"Well, someone that I care about said something very nasty to me earlier tonight," the morbid avatar stated, "I am actually at his place right now, using his computer…" Seto read correctly; it did say 'his place' on the screen.

After a few awkward moments, probably brought on by the accidental confession, Seto finally typed, "Continue."

"Sorry…I wasn't thinking…I suppose that it doesn't bother you?"

"No. I'm assuming that it isn't a brother or a relative, or else you may have decided to leave."

"It's my…boyfriend. I am not so certain that he will continue seeing me after this," Nevaeh said.

Finally he had managed to forage a piece of the ore that he needed. He emoted a signal for the dark knight to continue. There was still a bit of silence, so Seto told him, "Don't be timid around me. I know that you are normally a shy person, but you won't be able to sleep until you tell someone about it."

"Well, perhaps I should give you some background. It is the first time that he and I ever had a boyfriend. Normally he is surrounded by girls, but I don't actually believe that he has ever dated any of them."

"And you haven't dated before either?" Seto became very interested in the situation. It was similar to his own.

"No," the feather-cloaked character replied. He handed Seto's avatar some ore that he foraged and continued.

"A few days ago we…went a bit further. Not _that_ far, but…the next day he did something very horrible. We made up and tonight I stayed over, but I am thinking about leaving." Nevaeh stood and cast a healing spell that only worked on his skeletal minions; "I asked him what we would do once school started again, about the ridicule." So Nev was still in school as well. The brunette was intrigued.

"He said not to worry because our relationship was just an experiment anyway…"

"So he is using you just to figure out some things about himself?" Seto cringed. It was definitely a dirty thing to do. He could never imagine doing something so terrible to Joukatsu.

"It seems so. I believed that he actually liked me, but his attitude has been different in the recent week. I really started to like him." It was depressing, but Seto had to come up with something to say the dark knight. Not just because it could help him out in his own selfish ways, but he suspected that Nev's boyfriend was someone who also played the game, possibly even someone in the guild. It was obvious, since the game must have been installed on their computer.

"I can only tell you what I go through, Nev," he began, "I sometimes create false reasons for my actions so that I do not have to face reality. You said that only in the recent week has he acted like this. Maybe that is why he originally started seeing you, but now maybe he is unsure of what to do, because he does like you. He may be afraid of losing whatever status he had that allowed him to have so many girls around him."

"You may be right, Nymphe."

"However, I would have put him in his place and broken ties with him. Perhaps you should do the opposite. You may regret it if both of you like each other and end things with a bitter taste in your mouths."

"You type fast," Nev remarked. Seto smiled, taking that as a sign that he had actually helped the guy. It actually relieved him a bit.

"I think that I may log off and go see if he is awake. Is that all right with you?"

"Yes. We've actually collected more ore than I expected, and if I find any more my character will be encumbered and I won't be able to move." He checked his inventory; twenty-five pieces of ore. He'd be able to make some of the magical chain soon…just not tonight. The effects of the legal drug started to wear off.

"Thanks Nymphe," Nevaeh said, camping his character.

* * *

Stay tuned (even though this isn't a TV) for Chapter 8, where Jou goes shopping for new clothes (Thanks to my sister for the idea of a shopping trip). There was a bit of foreshadowing in the chapter as well…it just turned out that way, and I noticed it during my first reread.

Yami Bakura will _not_ make an appearance, unfortunately. Yami Yugi does appear; it was always intended for him to do so. I find his entrance to be quite hilarious.

Thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far! A big thanks to my new fans as well. I am really happy to see such great feedback! I wasn't expecting this fic to be such a hit; my writing style is very blunt and lacks eloquent descriptions when I write in third person, so needless to say I am very pleased.

If anyone is a fan of Ryuuji Otogi/Hiroto Honda, I've been sitting on a half finished first chapter of a little fic about them (for weeks actually) that I hope to post up soon. Fanfiction is really pulling my time away from my project at fictionpress…sigh.

A special little message to Amarin Rose - I've read a bunch of your one-shot YGO romances and unfortunately, was being a pain and giving me errors when I went to review them, or even email you a personal review! I just wanted to say that I really loved them, despite the fact that I am not a big fan of yamis and hikaris having separate bodies. You made it work!

Feel free to contact me via email! It's somewhere in my profile.

-Zelia Theb


	8. VIII: Silk, Zippers, and Unmentionables

Disclaimers are the same for all chapters.

Remember Yami Yugi? Yeah, there _IS_ a character known as Yami in _YGO_! -gasp-

Well, what I've gathered from the series, is that Yami is a tad psycho. Just think of all the duels where in the end he could care less about the person that he was dueling. Remember that scene where Yugi has all those ugly clothes spread out on his bed, and Yami helps him accessorize? He's actually quite an interesting character.

****

--

"This is my favorite place to shop!" Anzu exclaimed as they entered the very chic clothing store.

Word had gotten out that Jounouchi had a date with Nymphe that night, so Honda, Anzu, and Yugi had decided that they would take him shopping at their own expense. It was actually Yami, though, because Yugi claimed that Yami knew a bit more about fashion than Yugi; plus he hadn't been seen in a while. Yugi wouldn't let him play the game with everyone anyway. Everyone was in a light winter jacket, even though it wasn't as cold as it should be.

"This is a bit expensive, isn't it?" Jounouchi asked, feeling intimidated by his surroundings.

"It's a present," the girl said, "If you need a reason then we can say that it's your birthday. It's the same season!"

"This is good," Yami said, holding out a hanger. It held a black long-sleeved shirt, which zippered down the front, and had belts at the cuffs.

Anzu giggled and waved her hand in front of Yami's face, taking the hanger away from him. She placed it back on the rack and remarked, "How about something a little more conservative?" Yami shrugged at her, wondering what was wrong with the shirt.

"Follow me!" she commanded the group, grabbing onto Jou's wrist and dragging him through the store. They stopped at rack of silk shirts.

"Hmm, now what color?" she mumbled, searching through the hangers.

"Blue," the boys said in unison. She pulled out a semi-sheer blue shirt with black buttons down the front. The collar was pointed more-so than normal collared shirts.

"This is silk!" Jounouchi reminded the brunette.

"I know," she smiled, "But Nymphe is a nice girl, and you should look your best for her!" She pushed him toward the changing station, and said, "Now go try it on!"

"Hey! Ya don't have to push me!" the blonde protested. Anzu stuck her tongue out at him and shoved him into the curtained booth.

Several minor curses later, Jounouchi emerged, wearing the silk shirt, which he had buttoned up all the way. It reached just a bit passed his waist, and the bottom was cut in such a way that showed it shouldn't be tucked in.

"Wow! You look great in that Jounouchi!" she complimented. Jou blushed a bit, and studied the expressions on his friends' faces. Yami was the only one that didn't seem pleased.

With a twisted look on his face, and his eyebrows almost perpendicular to each other, Yami approached Jou slowly, stretching a single hand out in front of him. He took the top button of the shirt in between his fingers, feeling its smooth texture, then unbuttoned it, along with the button below that. A bit of the blushing boy's chest was revealed, but only just below the collarbone.

"Better," Yami remarked as he stepped back to admire Jounouchi.

"Definitely better!" Anzu squealed.

There was something about Yami that made Jou want to pull him back into the booth with him.

"Okay, stay in there Jou! We'll be right back with some more stuff!" Anzu yelled to him. In no less than ten minutes later, five pairs of pants attached to three different pairs of hands were handed to him from outside of the curtain.

"Try the jeans first, man!" Honda's voice called.

"No! The blue boot-cut corduroy's!" Anzu argued.

He scrutinized the different pairs of pants in his hands. There was a plain pair of deep blue jeans, boot-cut corduroy's in the same color, and three pairs of black pants. The choice among them was minimal; leather flares with no pockets, pleather flares with cargo pockets, or denim boot-cuts with silver zippers down the sides of the legs.

As Jou began to unzipper his own jeans to begin to try things on, he heard the curtain slide open slightly.

"Jounouchi," Yami poked his head in, narrowing his eyes, "The pair with zippers."

"You…you can't just walk in to any one of these things when someone's in them!" Jounouchi raised his voice, blushing rather noticeably.

"I know," Yami winked, "I think I came in too early." He shut the curtain after that, leaving Jounouchi to try on the pants. Sometimes Yami really made him wonder. He figured the guy was off his rocker, even though he secretly enjoyed it.

When his hormones calmed down a bit, he finally tried on the black zipper pants, and stepped out to show everyone. Yami was trying on sunglasses, since they were on sale, due to being somewhat out of season.

"Those aren't the ones I picked out!" Anzu and Honda shouted. Yami lowered his current pair of glasses and gave him a wicked look, accompanied with a thumbs up.

"I like them," Jou admitted.

"You've been staying with Yugi too long, man," Honda remarked. Yami shot an evil glare his way.

"He does look great though, Honda," Anzu said. The tallest boy shrugged as Jounouchi changed back into his normal clothes.

"We're going to go buy this stuff, and then you and I will pick out some new shoes," Anzu told Jou as he re-emerged from behind the curtain, holding his new clothing.

"What's wrong with my shoes?" the blonde asked, staring down at his black sneakers.

"You can't wear sneakers on your first date! Those pants would go horrible with them anyway!" his friend informed him, placing her hands angrily on her hips.

"What are we doing?" Honda asked her.

"You two have to get him some essentials!" she said. Anzu then leaned over and whispered the rest into Honda's ear.

"Got it," he said, motioning for Yami to follow.

* * *

Seto sifted through his deck of cards, wondering why he hadn't picked it up lately. He stopped when he found a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and stared at it for a moment. Maybe he should bring the deck with him, just because. His thumb drifted over a small red stain in the corner of the card, reminding him of the time he had helped Yugi's friend.

At least this was one thing that they weren't involved with, for once. He clenched his teeth, and decided to put his deck away.

* * *

"Did you get everything?" Anzu asked Honda. They were standing outside of the store, watching their own breath form in front of them as they exhaled. Jou was holding a black bag which had the clothing and the black boots they just bought.

Honda held up a plastic bag as proof and declared, "Yep, got everything!"

Jounouchi snatched the bag from Honda and looked inside. The bag crinkled and rustled as he searched through its contents, pulling things out one by one and handing them to Anzu.

"Cologne?" he exclaimed, "I don't smell bad!"

"It's not to cover up anything, idiot!" Anzu chided, "A small amount of really good cologne can drive a girl crazy!"

"Hair…gel? Super extra firm hold level five?" he held out a bottle of green gel.

"That's for us," Yami stated, referring to the body that both he and Yugi shared.

"And this level one?" Jou asked, pulling out a bottle of yellow hair gel.

"That one is for you!" Honda told him.

"Breath mints?!"

"Just in case!" Anzu assured him.

"_HONDA!_" Jou growled, pulling said boy close by the collar of his jacket, "What are _these_ for?" The blonde didn't bother pulling the last item out of the bag, for Anzu's sake.

Honda smirked and whispered, "You can take one. You never know if you'll need it!" He giggled a bit at the thought.

"You jerk," he muttered, "I'm not like that!" Jounouchi thought about the items for another second. "I get one but five come in a box. Just what are _you_ planning, Honda?" Jounouchi interrogated his friend.

"Don't you have a sister, Jounouchi?" Yami asked him, doing that weird thing with his new sunglasses.

"Yugi!" Honda cried out.

"You jerk! I'll punch yer lights out if you ever think of doing that! You better not be seeing her behind my back!" Jou clenched a fist in front of Honda's face.

"No, no, no!" the boy stammered, "I haven't seen or talked to her since she went home! Honest!"

"I'll get you!" the pampered one shook Honda in his grip.

Meanwhile, Yami casually walked up to them, and reached a hand into the bag as it moved wildly about from the commotion. He pulled out one of the items and then stuck the packet in his coat pocket. This got the attention of everyone. Yami just shrugged one shoulder at them in response.

"Anzu, what's wrong?" Jou teased, "You seem like you've just seen a ghost." The brunette just stood there, mortified and speechless. It was obvious that she liked Yugi, and even more obvious that she thought the action Yami made was directed at her.

"Ignore her, girl moment," Honda said, "By the way man, I've got this awesome jacket you can borrow. Just don't wreck it! It's suede."

* * *

"Wow! These sunglasses are so cool!" Yugi said as he inspected the purchase Yami had made earlier. He was looking at everything that had been purchased a few hours ago, which was laid out on his neatly made bed.

"They were on sale," Honda said. He was spending the night to make sure that everything went smoothly, and to help Jounouchi get ready.

There were two hours left until the destined rendezvous. Jou's stomach could have won the Olympic games with all of the gymnastics that it was doing.

"Hey, Jounouchi," Honda nudged him with his elbow, "You're pretty lucky that a cool girl like Nymphe would live in Domino. Plus she's older!"

"I know! That's why I'm so nervous! So shut up already!" Jou scolded, "She probably knows a lot more about stuff than I do…"

"Maybe it's Mai!" Yugi proposed.

"Wow! That would be such a coincidence."

"They don't have the same voice, or the same attitude! And Mai doesn't work for a company!" Jou corrected them.

The shortest boy sighed at Jou's lack of…anything. He uttered in a monotone voice, "Jounouchi. No one's voice sounds the same in the game. There is a built in pitch shifter, haven't you noticed?" The blonde blinked.

"Yeah man," the brunette boy added, "And Mai would be the type to make a hot character just to get items from perverted guys."

"Uhh…sure…" Jou remarked. They could think what they wanted, because there was no way that Mai was really a man. He wished that he could blurt it out, but he remembered that promise he made.

Maybe Nymphe had something more to hide than just his gender.

"You have to get washed up! Get going!" Honda's voice commanded, interrupting his deep thoughts.

"All right already!" Jou said, leaving the room.

As he showered, he thought about everything that could possibly happen. Would Nymphe be handsome? How much older was he? He hoped that he would be attractive enough to suit Impy's taste.

If anyone from school was there, he would be ridiculed for the entire next year, possibly even beat up. If his father found out, who knows what could happen. Even worse, _what if Kaiba found out?_ He would never hear the end of it. All of the possible taunts flew through Jou's head, making him angry.

Then again, his friends would protect him at any cost. Otogi was probably dealing with all of this already, and his boyfriend was incredibly shy and probably not even able to handle himself. Then again, the girls drooled over both Ryou _and_ Ryuuji, so once school started again they would probably have an even larger following.

Jounouchi wondered if growing his hair long would do the trick. No way, the girls hated him. He never understood why; his skin was clear, his body was fit, so what was the problem? Probably his personality and poor grades.

He turned off the water and dried himself, before putting his clothes on. It was time to get ready.

He walked back into Yugi's room to see his friends dueling.

"Where did you get a deck from, Honda?" he asked.

"I have a lot of extra cards, so he made up a deck really quick!" Yugi explained for the other boy, "It's not that bad either."

Honda sighed, "But you're still winning." Yugi grinned victoriously. It was his turn, and he attacked Honda with his Dark Magician, making Honda lose. He let out an exhale of defeat, and the boy's put their cards away.

"Get dressed!" Honda commanded, "It's almost eleven! You still need time to get there!"

"Okay, okay already!" Jou replied.

"Where's that hair gel?" his friend asked him.

"Umm…Yugi put it in his pocket," Jou answered.

Yugi walked over to his jacket, unaware that there were things in his coat pocket. He pulled out a bottle of green gel and a bottle of yellow gel. He reached in again, feeling for the other anonymous object, wondering out loud, "What's this?" He pulled out the packet from earlier, and yelped, dropping it on his bed.

"Where did I get something like this?!" The two others started giggling to themselves as Yugi appeared to have a mental conversation.

"Hey Yugi, I have something we can watch while we wait for Jounouchi to screw up his date," Honda said, reaching in his backpack of things. Jou growled as he applied the hairgel. The tallest boy pulled out a video with two scantily dressed blondes on the cover. He waved it in front of the smaller kid's face teasingly, then quickly put it away.

"I'm not going to screw everything up, Honda!" Jou hastily replied, "And can't you guys wait for me to get back?"

"Nope," he replied, waving his index finger back and forth, "You're taken now, so you can't watch these anymore. It's the golden rule of relationships."

"Oh, you're such the gentlemen," Jou snided.

"You guys can't fight! People are sleeping!" Yugi informed them, "And it's late! You have to get going soon! Don't forget the cologne."

"Don't douse yourself in it," Honda warned. Jounouchi dabbed just a bit on his neck.

"How's that?" he asked confidently.

"Good," Honda said, picking up the suede jacket he mentioned earlier in the day. He helped Jou get into it and warned, "I'll get you if you wreck this. It's my favorite coat, and it's warm too." The chocolate suede coat fell to just below the length of the silk shirt. Honda was right, it was a very nice coat, and Jou instantly felt warm.

"Want us to walk you there?" Yugi asked politely.

"Naw, no need. Just wait up for me, okay guys?" The boys nodded.

Jou flashed them a thumbs up, and left the room.

* * *

Chapter 9 is the one that we've all been waiting for.

Aside from that, look forward to Behind the Pixels, a series of side stories that coincide with this fic. I may post the first "Chapter" tonight or tomorrow. I've decided to make side stories to explain what happens with everyone else during this winter break...story one will answer some of the questions about Otogi and Bakura. So check it out!

Thanks for the great reviews! They really bring a smile to my face ). To all of the new reviewers, I'm glad you like the story so far! Hope to see you review again.

As for a different type of thanks…There is a list of people who I haven't seen review but have actually added me to their favorite authors list or their author alert. So thanks to everyone, reviewer and non-reviewer: InsaneHyperness, Hideki LaShae, Alteng, Santurion2, Drakemar, Amarin Rose, PoofBall and a Half, Cabbitshivers, Elusia, Seth-the-lonely-soul, BarbedWire23, Cherry-Wolf, Pegasusmon, Emerald Dragon08, nasako, starrynightz, Animefighter6, Umi no Oni, Egypts, Brandi, mandapandabug, Kumori Sakusha formerly Saelbu, Kioee Manioso, Nikkie, Casey Katemara, Anime Crazed, joey baby, ColeyCarissa, Kodachi, chibichibi-nekochan, Magna Dragoon, Glen, BlingBling021, Rowan and Sakura, Nikki, Dyth, and Dan.


	9. IX: The Rose with Thorns

You'll notice that this chapter is written a bit differently. I'm trying to place a heavy influence on the moment.

There is one thing that I want to mention about this whole project. The running theme is that people often show their true personalities online, even if they aren't truthful about who they are. Arguments are far more vicious, and confessions are extremely easy to make. The secondary theme would be the changes that teenagers go through in their life. When certain things change, life can be an emotional roller coaster. If life never shifted; if there were no incidents to bring about question; does a teenager ever change from that innocent child that they were? It's something to think about.

(An apology for the redundancy there.)

Disclaimers are the same throughout all chapters.

****

--------------

Seto Kaiba leaned his forearms against the cold steel railing which overlooked Domino Square. There was nothing to watch this time, other than the dead leaves that rustled in the dry fountain. The breeze was chilled, but not threatening enough to move the foliage from its resting place. His long indigo coat was heavy enough to endure the wind as well; it neatly covered his green shirt and pants.

The clarity of the sky astounded the slender boy. Domino was a very busy city; but then again, this section wasn't known for its nightlife, so there was only a minor artificial glow from his surroundings. It wasn't enough to blanket the stars, which was soothing enough for Seto.

He nervously caressed the gift in his right hand, being careful not to prick himself. With all of his money, this was the best that he could do. He only knew how to be chivalrous with something like this; he had never learned anything else. He continued the stroking motion, hoping to keep his fingers from going numb.

The tall brunette made a point of not moving at every noise he heard. Maintaining his composure usually wasn't so difficult. The sound of crunching leaves, however, did finally gain his attention. He stared to his left at the familiar face, angry at the creature's intrusion. He refused to move from his place though, and tried to hide his hand from the invader.

"What the hell is a guy like you doing out here this late?" Jounouchi taunted, "Don't you have to get your precious beauty sleep?"

Seto glared at him, hoping that he would spontaneously combust and get the hell out of there. He rebutted, "I should have known that a stray dog would wander the park at night. Shoo."

He studied the obnoxious boy carefully. He was certainly well dressed, and actually looked attractive for once, not that he never did, it just stood out much more with the clothing. Still, he did not move from his place.

"Shut up, I have every right to be here right now. Maybe _you_ should buy your own park and freeze your ass off _there_." The blonde's words were more confidant and demeaning than usual. Seto saw the look in the boy's brown eyes; he was ready to do anything he could to drive him away from the park.

Of course, Seto was ready to do the same if necessary.

"Just leave," he requested. The breeze picked up a bit, threatening to tear the gift out of Seto's fingers. He tightened his grip, wincing at the minor sensation, but did not injure himself.

"No, you leave," Jounouchi retorted. His blonde locks barely swayed in the wind. Seto smirked at the thought of the mutt using hair gel.

"What's the matter, cur?" Seto snarled, "If you're looking for a nice sniff, the nightclubs are on the opposite side of the city. It's not like anyone in their right mind would want to go out with _you_." It was almost arduous to say that; he had to admit that the boy really did seem tempting.

"You're wrong," Jounouchi corrected without hesitation, "I'm not a lonely bastard like you are." He was nearly in Seto's face now, taking the fabric of his trench coat into his fist. He turned him around, his hateful spheres of brown threatening a fight.

His cologne smelled nice.

In the face of that fact, though, Seto still had to say something. He stared him right back, now hiding the gift at his side, and stated, "Who said that I'm lonely?" His captured wrist soon broke free and did the same to the blonde's suede coat, even though the tough skin made it a tad more difficult.

"In fact, I'm not the one who has to create imaginary girlfriend's, dog," Seto scornfully remarked. Jounouchi still wasn't giving up.

It slowly began to hit him.

"Impy loves me, and he's not imaginary!" the blonde blurted out, wrestling his borrowed jacket out of Kaiba's fingertips. He opened his eyes wide, seeming to regret that he had admitted loving a man.

Seto's eyes followed suit. He gripped the flower tighter. He felt pain; this wasn't a dream.

Katsuya Jounouchi. Joukatsu. A blonde dullard of a warrior, surrounded by a bunch of strange friends. Was Seto really blinded to that fact this whole time?

He told Jounouchi that he was in love with him.

He spent countless hours ignoring his normal duties, ignoring his body's pleas for rest, ignoring Mokuba, all of it for Jounouchi. The one thing that he did to forget about them, to forget about his hatred, and to relax, was the one thing that only stitched him deeper into their lives; into _his_ life.

Jounouchi stared at Seto with a questioning glare. It was almost as if the blonde wanted him to respond to the confession. He did.

"K..Katsuya…" Seto stuttered, stepping forward. He didn't want to fight; he just wanted to lean down and…

* * *

Seto's lips were close enough for Jounouchi to feel the warmth of his face; and taste the mint on his breath, before he slapped them away. What the hell was he trying to pull, anyway?

Seto turned back around, staring at the bottom of the railing supports, rubbing his face. Jounouchi glared at him, flushed and angry, and asked, "What's the matter with ya? I get under your skin a bit and you try a new way to get rid'a me?" He knew that wasn't the case. His blue eyes gave that away, it was the one time that Jounouchi was actually able to read Kaiba.

"I…should have known. It does take some time for things to come for you," he uttered, his voice trembling, "However it took me just as much time, even though it was so plainly obvious all along."

"You're such a bastard," was all that Jou managed to say. He was trying to decode Kaiba's cryptic words.

"I deserve that," the brunette replied, still staring at the ground. His shoulders were limp; it was so un-Kaiba like.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Jou yelled, "Of course you deserve that!" The blonde struggled to see what Kaiba was hiding in his right hand.

"I…think that you've won, Joukatsu," he admitted. He placed his free hand on the chilled metal in front of him.

The short-tempered boy choked on the air. The pieces were falling in place, just as Kaiba had predicted. The hidden identity, the strange attitude, and the barely lit meeting place.

__

"Please don't tell anyone."

__

"…as hard as that is for someone like me to admit. That is why you had to know. I'd like to meet you, in person. Where do you live? I can come to you."

__

"I'll be waiting on the railing. Not many people go there late at night, which is good for many reasons. It will be okay."

Yeah, right. He just cared about his reputation, that was all. A typical Kaiba move. Waving his superiority and his money around like nothing. He even looked down upon him in the game.

"Go to hell," Jou scathed, his voice teeming with betrayal.

"I wish that I could," Seto mumbled.

__

"It's the perfect place for people like him to break out of their shell."

__

"It's okay to like someone online, Jounouchi, you get to see their personality that way. The good, and the bad. People can hide behind the monitor, so their actions are without real life consequence."

__

"It is ironic, that for so long I scorned the thought of fate, and detested the threads of destiny, but now it seems that these things truly do exist, as this seems to be more than just a coincidence."

If only he hadn't been so terrible in the past. If only his first impression of the guy wasn't a memory of him destroying someone else's dear possession.

"All you could ever do was flaunt your power and your money all over the place. The only words you could ever say to me were references to dogs!" the blonde shouted, holding back the tears and sadness in his soul. His chest seemed like it wanted to collapse inward, and the invisible weight was too heavy to remove.

"I know…" Seto shuddered from what _appeared_ to be the cold, "You don't have to tell me."

"You're so self-centered, that all ya can do is push people away and watch them squirm. You actually _enjoy_ watching them do it too! You're disgusting," Jou clenched his teeth, trying to settle down, "You deserve to hurt. You should hurt. A stupid card game was more important to you than anything else on Earth. Now look where you are, Kaiba!"

__

"You waited for me all day, didn't ya?"

__

"You said that you thought I would never show. You've been waiting around, haven't you?"

__

"Yes…"

__

"I'm in love with you also…"

"I hate you," Jou stated bluntly, "I really _hate_ you."

Seto finally gave up and turned to leave. The breeze was becoming more bitter and relentless with the moment. Before he stepped away, Seto turned to face the blonde one last time. Water trailed down his cheek, and he looked away quickly, tossing the hidden object in his hand over the railing.

Instead of watching the boy he hated leave, he sped over to the ledge curiously.

A single peace rose fought the wind, falling to its grave below. The pink and white gradient of the petals would soon turn brown and become crushed under the feet of morning pedestrians. Jounouchi watched them separate, one by one, and whip through the air. The boy turned heel and fled back to Yugi's house, not caring who heard him weep on the way.

* * *

Yugi was waiting outside of his house patiently for Jounouchi. He didn't bother with a jacket; warmth was just beyond the door.

Yami took over when Jounouchi suddenly ran up and collapsed into his arms. He didn't care that Yugi saw him with tears streaming down his face.

"Where's…where's Honda?" Jou managed to let out. He was shaking violently in the shorter boy's arms.

"He's asleep," Yami answered as he stroked the blonde head in his hold, "What happened?"

"I was stupid to think that anyone decent could ever love me," Jou sobbed. The tears felt warm on Yugi's body.

"Let's go inside," Yami suggested, taking Jou's cold hand in his own and leading him through the door. They made their way upstairs into Yugi's room, and finally collapsed on the floor. Honda was sleeping peacefully in Yugi's bed, wearing blue pajamas. His limbs were stretched everywhere, claiming the entire mattress. A futon was prepared on the floor.

"Yugi decided that he should sleep on the floor, and you two take the bed…" Yami explained, "You may have to push him over. He's a heavy sleeper like Yugi."

"I'm not going to sleep, I can't sleep," the blonde continued to sob, "I feel sick to my stomach…" Jounouchi eased his breathing a bit, trying his best to calm himself out of being ill.

Yami placed a hand on his shoulder as he kneeled down in front of him. He stayed there a moment, giving it a consoling massage with his fingers, then grabbed his shoulder and pulled Jou back into another embrace. The crying boy felt wanted, he felt safe, and he felt vulnerable.

"People care about you, Jounouchi," Yami whispered, "It doesn't matter what happened. That won't change." He suggestively removed Honda's coat from Jou's shoulders, tossing it on the computer desk's chair.

"Yugi…" Jou uttered, caving in to the advances. He felt so alone, and it seemed like this was the right thing to do in order to fix that.

"_I'm not Yugi_," Yami breathed, pressing his mouth against Jou's.

For nearly five minutes, the two boys kissed each other, allowing their hands to know no boundaries, although it never went as far as it could have.

"I can't believe that you would do that," Honda suddenly scolded them. The boys broke apart, which allowed the brunette to make his next move easily. He punched Yami in face, and chided, "You should know better than to take advantage of a friend when they are so vulnerable!"

"You...you weren't asleep?" Yami asked, rubbing his face and hoping that Yugi would forgive him.

"Only half-asleep. It didn't hit me until I actually opened my eyes to see what the heck was up," Honda replied curtly, "What the hell are you two thinkin'? Jounouchi, what happened?"

"I..can't tell you," Jou answered, not being able to look his friends in their faces. A part of him still wanted to keep that promise to Kaiba, even though he was hurting so badly.

Yami sat there motionless as Honda continued his interrogation.

"You _have_ to tell me, man! This doesn't just affect you, ya know. It's going to affect everyone in the guild too! Now what happened?" The tallest boy sat back down on Yugi's bed and crossed his arms patiently. His persistence was going to make Jou break in his state. That was easy enough to confirm, considering what had just happened on the floor.

"I hate…her," Jou said.

"What? I thought you two were madly in love or something like that?" Honda flailed his arms about wildly; "You hate her? What's going _on_?"

"I promised I wouldn't tell…"

"So you don't hate her, do you?

"…"

"I'm right. You can tell us whenever you want. Now let's go to sleep before we wake everyone up, okay guys?" Honda advised. He turned to the remaining boy on the floor, which was still possessed by the spirit, and warned, "And don't you try _anything_ for the rest of the break. You can't use Yugi's body as a shield; I'm not afraid to come after you if you take advantage of him again."

* * *

Wow, only two chapters left, and then this fic is _done_. Crazy, huh?

A big thanks for all the reviews - Breaking 100 really brought a smile to my face!

Behind the Pixels, a series of side stories to this fic is _up_! The first story explains how Otogi and Bakura got together. I'm currently working on two more of the stories; Yami and Honda at the pharmacy and a Yugi one. I'm not certain one which one to post first…so you'll have to wait and see.

I know that I've made Otogi become somewhat of a jerkface (Somewhat? Okay…he just can't handle a real relationship…) I really have no idea if I intend on resolving the issues in his relationship or what. I just want to say one thing; I'm a Bakura fan, and a huge Otogi fan. It's an odd pairing, but I actually like it. I just like to torture characters even more (No, I am not sadistic…). People think I'm weird for liking Otogi…but oh well. I often wonder if he has a tattoo of Skull Dice somewhere on his body…maybe I'll work that into the side stories ;).

Oh, and don't get me wrong. I try as hard as possible to keep the characters _in_ character. Like I said at the top, they are teenagers, and they are _never_ portrayed as such in the anime. Too often they act like they are adults. It's really sad.

I hope everyone enjoyed it! I'm curious to see what everyone's predictions are, and what they thought of the events.

-Zelia Theb


	10. X: Overreacting

Disclaimers are the same throughout all chapters.

Vocab:

****

**Faction**: A group, or a player's standing with the group. A faction is NOT player made, and depending on what a player kills, which NPCs they speak to, and what quests they complete, some of these things can raise or lower faction with one or more groups. Generally, a faction is preset depending on race and class. Some can be altered, and some can't.

A strange note regarding uploads - in either the first or second chapter, we see the login screen. Originally I had five asterisks there to symbolize that a password had been entered - unfortunately due to the fact that for some reason, html uploads for don't like asterisks, what showed up was a bunch of empty spaces. So you'll see an inconsistency here with the login screen shown in the middle of the chapter. I'll probably go back and fix the first login screen and other minor mistakes later (aka when I feel like it or never). =)

Still wondering about Yami? Check out the A/N at the end of the chapter (don't spoil it for yourself, wait until you've read it of course!)

-hands out virtual tissues to those who were teared up by Chapter 9-

****

------------

"Where've you been all of this time?" Nymphe asked Joukatsu. They were in a zone filled with a swirling cerulean mist.

"Me? I've been right here," the human warrior answered.

"No you haven't. I've been waiting for you," she told him, her voice slowly becoming deeper and fading from its angelic tone.

Nymphe drew her weapon, which she rarely revealed. It was a spiky black mace. She readied it steadily in front of her.

"You're a liar. You're a dog. Why don't you just die with your pathetic friends?"

"What are you saying?" Jou shouted. He tried to unsheathe his sword, but for some reason his hands became tangled in his armor.

"You'll never be good enough for me. I have money and I have this ring. You're just a third rate player, Jounouchi." Nymphe transformed into Seto Kaiba and began cackling gleefully.

"_Damn it_," Jou muttered as he sat up in bed, "I'm so sick of that dream…"

* * *

"Whaddya mean Nymphe isn't coming?" Otogi shouted in the guildhall. Everyone, save Nymphe, was present.

"She can't come," Jounouchi lied, "She has a meeting that she can't miss." He waited for the rest of his guildmates to respond, hoping that none of them had spoken to the cleric, or that Yugi and Honda kept their traps shut.

__

_Duke tells you, 'Don't fricken lie to me, Jou.'_

"I'm not lying," Jou typed in response, "That's what she told me."

__

_Duke tells you, 'You know, I just checked the online guild records. Only the leaders of a guild get this privilege. You know what? It shows that she removed herself from the guild three days ago. Care to explain?'_

"No," was all he replied back with.

"Well, sorry guys, but unless we can come up with another cleric, or at least two subhealers, we will lose to Demise and they will be the first to clear the Tomb of the Scalekeepers," Otogi informed everyone. Jou's guildmates sighed dreadfully; they relied on Nymphe too much.

"We have two days," Bakura reminded everyone.

"I'm taking a break for a bit, guys," the bard announced, "I'll be back online in two hours if anyone wants to hunt. Maybe we can recruit some new players." As the half-elf sat down to set up camp and log out, he added, "Nevaeh, you have inviting rights when I'm offline." Everyone nodded in compliance with that, and several members logged off, Joukatsu being one of them.

"Jounouchi?" Yugi came into the room, "Why'd you log off? I thought you were going to take Anzu and I hunting."

"I don't feel like listening to everyone's crap today," Jou filled Yugi in, standing from the chair, "All Anzu does is whine about how many times she dies. Maybe if she knew how to play right she wouldn't keep dyin'. You keep overnukin' the hell out of stuff so then you die too. If you guys can't learn how to manage your aggro properly, why the hell should I play with ya?"

"Jounouchi!"

"I bet Otogi is on his way here right now to come bitch at me," Jou pondered out loud, "So tell him I said screw off. He's just a low life who likes to use people. Too bad that creep who used to take over Ryou all the time hasn't come back and punched him square in the face." The blonde snatched his coat angrily off the back of the chair and put it on.

"Why are you saying all of these things? Where are you going?" Yugi asked, terrified for a reason unknown to him.

"I'm getting outta here for a while," the angry blonde announced. He shoved Yugi out of the way, but quickly regretted treating his friend in such a manner. He looked back at the boy, feeling guilty, and said, "I'll come back tonight, I promise."

* * *

__

_Zoerb_ _tells you, 'I found you! Stay there, I need to talk to you.'_

Seto just glared at his screen in disgust. He contemplated logging off, but decided against it since the wizard had already teleported to the same zone and caught him.

"What's this about?" he asked the human, wondering which one of the hate-filled blonde's friends was about to harass him.

"Why did you leave the guild?" Zoerb asked innocently.

"I wanted to." He didn't have to explain himself to some _twerp_.

"What happened with you and Jou? I know that's why you left," Zoerb accused him. Maybe that kid wasn't as much of a blabbermouth as he had previously suspected. After the way that he reacted, he was certain that he would have tried to smudge his name on the game, or at least within the guild, just for some sort of revenge for everything that he has done.

Was it because the kid was honorable, or because he loved him regardless of what he had said a few nights ago?

"He saw me, and then told me that he hated me," the brunette answered truthfully, "Satisfied?"

"Not really! My friend would never do anything like that!" Zoerb testified, "You must have done something." Perhaps it was time to figure out which one of the idiots had been sent in the coward's place. Then again, he knew in his heart that Katsuya was _not_ a coward, but the thought of hating him made him forget that he loved him, at least for a single fleeting moment.

"How would you know, Zoerb? This is just an online game, how do you know that Joukatsu would never do something like that?" Seto taunted him, "I've done more hunting with him than you have, so wouldn't I know him better?"

"He's my best friend in the real world, Nymphe," Zoerb replied, "Maybe we haven't hunted as often as you two did, but we do everything else together! We've dueled in tournaments, right up to the finals, side by side."

It was Yugi; there was no doubt about _that_ now. Seto typed, "Oh? And he hasn't told you what happened?"

"No," the wizard replied honestly, "I want you to tell me. We need you back in the guild. Jou hasn't been the same, and we won't be able to beat Demise to clearing the Tomb of the Scalekeepers!"

After thinking for a moment about everything that was said, Seto decided that he should probably try and use Yugi's personality to his advantage. He had to trust that Jounouchi would continue to keep his secret. It wouldn't be that big of a disappointment if he didn't, as he had already mentally prepared himself for that fact anyway.

It was time to do away with the pompous attitude, and try to repair everything. He had to take his own advice. He wasn't used to crying so often, and in his heart he truly didn't care who Jounouchi's friends were.

He loved him.

"Zoerb, just pass this message on for me. Tell Jounouchi that I love him." He wiped some tears away with the edge of his sleeve as he had been doing. It was hard enough to deal with the heartbreak.

"What about that raid? No one really knows that you left," the wizard looked down, "Jou lied and told them all that you had plans." He lied for him? Twice? Perhaps the fool really did feel the same way, and only said those things to him out of shock and anger.

"I'll come back if Jou speaks to me." It was Seto's last statement before logging off and going to the park that overlooked Domino Square.

* * *

The snow was falling gently to the pavement, and melting slowly on impact. Jounouchi stared down at the pavement in the square below, wondering if that crushed rose was still around or if the wind had taken it away. Night had already fallen, and it was going on eight o'clock.

"I should get going," he mumbled, glad that he cooled down. He needed to apologize to Yugi for the way that he acted earlier. It certainly was out of character of him to blow up like that, to a close friend anyway.

"Or you could stay," a deep voice suggested.

"K…Kaiba!" Jounouchi cried in surprise. What was he doing there? Had they thought alike again and come back to their meeting place?

"Come with me," Kaiba extended a hand, palm up. Jounouchi sniffed a bit, his nose was turning pink and starting to run.

"Get away from me!" the blonde yelled, dashing out of the park and heading back. The slender boy sighed, wondering if his actions were futile.

* * *

"Nymphe told me to tell you something," Yugi said as soon as Jounouchi burst into his room. The boy's nose was red and he was panting heavily from all of the running that he did, even though Seto never followed him.

"You…talked to Impy?" Jou asked, wondering how the hell that was possible, unless that was what drove Seto to the park to begin with.

"She was online and I managed to catch her. She didn't tell me what happened between you two, but wanted me to tell you that she loved you."

"Nymphe…said that she loved me?" Jounouchi repeated, clutching his chest. Kaiba _must_ have figured everything else by now, so why would he willingly tell Yugi something like that? Maybe he was just using Yugi as a pawn, taking advantage of his personality to pass his little messages on.

"She said that she would come back to the guild and raid with us if you talked to her," the spiky-haired boy went on, "But I'm not sure if she'll be online or what. If you had her phone number, or knew where she lived or something…"

"I'm not going to speak to her, end of story," Jou flatly asserted. He looked at Yugi's amethyst eyes, and changed the subject; "Yug, I'm sorry about earlier…I'm not sure what got into me."

"It's all right, Jounouchi," he assured him, "You've been really worked up about everything since that night."

"Oh…you remember that night?" Jou blushed, recalling how Yami had shoved his tongue down his throat.

"No, I was blocked out, if that makes sense," Yugi blushed back, but not for the same reason Jou was.

"Good." The blonde breathed a sigh of relief; the imaginary awkwardness had weighed him down for almost four days.

"Good?"

Uh oh. He really needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut. He stuttered, "Umm, yeah, well you know how the _other_ Yugi can be…" Yugi just blinked, waiting for more. Jou waved his hand in front of him nervously and said, "Never mind!"

"Okay, well I'm going to sleep now," the clueless boy announced, "I was up early today."

Jounouchi acknowledged that and figured he could log in to the game. Maybe he'd be able to pick up a cleric or at least a few healers for the guild.

* * *

__

Login Name: jouk01

Password: xxxxx

Loading world files…

You have entered Laen!

"Look at who decided to come to the defense of his town, Molt."

Jou spun his character around to load his surroundings faster, and saw Moltaenya and Heretyc standing at the front gate of Laen. As usual, their arms were crossed in a rather arrogant fashion. It was yet another one of the classic Demise run-ins.

"What are you two doing here?" he questioned. Dark elves normally had horrible faction with the Laen guards, and couldn't enter the town safely or else the guards would gang up on them and attack.

"Killing guards," Moltaenya churlishly answered. The guards were level sixty, and had a high defense rating, especially against magic. They were rarely attacked for several reasons. Each guard was linked to two others within their call range, so single pulling was difficult until the spawn times were broken up so much that only one guard of the triad would be up at a time.

"Just the two of you?" the human wondered, "What about the people in the town who need to run to guards when a monster is attacking them?" Joukatsu had to do this a few times himself; it always sucked when one of the guards was on patrol or stuck in a strange glitch.

"Of course," Heretyc rhetorically replied, "It isn't that much of a surprise. Besides…"

"The guards drop these great little signet rings that low level players would pay tons of money to have," the blue-skinned warrior twirled her sword around in a circle, "Too bad for Radiant Eclipse, though…Only the guards on the Laen Armory faction have them. You punks wouldn't be able to use your guildhall anymore." The two ladies snickered before Heretyc ran off to pull another guard.

Jounouchi sat back in his chair and watched them kill the guard. They boasted about finding yet _another_ ring, then pulled another. However, this one, Guard Galen, was taking forever to kill. Moltaenya was landing every hit, and doing nearly two hundred damage per swipe. This was above average for warriors at level sixty, mostly because she was using a one-handed sword; usually only a two-handed weapon was heavy enough to cripple a monster so badly. However, this guard was being persistent in holding on to life.

"'Bout time they paid you guys back," he commented, "This bud's health ain't goin' down an inch!"

"Shut up," Moltaenya barked at him, wildly swinging her sword. She seemed to be at the top of the guard's hate list, as he was focusing on killing her.

"I don't understand, Molt," Heretyc stated, perplexed. She stopped attacking to summon a skeletal pet, then began casting another spell after that. She transferred some of her own life; little by little as she was only a hybrid; to Moltaenya. It was futile.

"I know," the leader remarked, "We killed this one three times already."

"Perhaps that's because I've been healing him," a female voice interrupted. Jou didn't bother to turn and see who it was as he already knew who could be behind something like this.

"How is that possible?" the dark knight wondered.

"Read the manual, wench," Nymphe suggested, "It states right there, that the only NPCs which may be affected by healing or other beneficial spells and effects are guards which protect the root towns that each player starts in." Jou expected as much from Kaiba, even though to him, it was a pretty cool thing to do.

"Why are you doing something like this?" the warrior flashed her crimson eyes at the cleric.

"To annoy you," the elf answered, "And also to make sure the low level players can be protected. It is my duty as a priestess of the dragon deity."

"Whatever, we have what we need," Heretyc retorted, casting a spell which caused many small skulls to appear around Guard Galen. He started running toward the town in fear.

"It's too bad that my jewel craft skill is high enough to make rings which are better than those measly signets you've been looting," Nymphe sympathized with them as they turned heel for the zone line. "I can create them for only a fraction of the cost…so good luck trying to find a player willing to buy _your_ loot." The evil elves glared at the cleric in disgust and quickly walked for the zone line.

"Typical of you," Joukatsu muttered once they were alone.

"They were causing problems," the brunette defended.

"_You're_ causing problems," he childishly spat back.

"I told Yugi that I would come back if we could talk."

"I knew that you had figured it out, and used him to play messenger boy," the blonde snarled, "You're just a high-class jerk."

__

_Nymphe tells you, 'I'm sorry, Jounouchi.'_

"Those words might mean something if you weren't using your computer as a shield," Jou replied, switching off the computer without even logging out. He didn't care if his progress hadn't been saved, it wasn't like he had done anything of importance when he logged in anyway.

The room was fairly dark now, so he got undressed as silently as possible. He climbed over Yugi, hoping not to accidentally crush any of his friend's tiny limbs.

"You're mad…" the other boy in the bed observed. Of course he was! Kaiba was a complete jerk; he couldn't make up for everything so easily. Maybe not at all.

"I thought you were sleeping, did I wake ya up when I climbed in?" he asked.

"Oh, you didn't wake _me_ up. I was _already_ awake." The innuendo in the voice tipped Jounouchi off. It was the other Yugi, and he seemed to be ignoring Honda's warning. The question was, did Jou care in his angry state?

It certainly would be an interesting way of getting back at Kaiba, even if he didn't know it. He tried to shake the thought out of his mind. It was Yugi's body, and using it as a pawn would be something Seto Kaiba would do, not Katsuya Jounouchi.

"Honda really doesn't need to find out, does he?" Yami seductively whined, placing a hand on his friend's exposed stomach. The touch caused Jou to flinch a bit, even though he expected it. The hand began sliding up and down his ribs, and eventually cupped him on his back.

"Yugi…" Jou whispered, "I don't think that this is a good idea…" He tried to turn over to his other side, but Yami forcefully held him down. He whimpered in his head, hoping that he would have the willpower necessary to withstand the advances.

"Oh, I think that it is a wonderful idea, Jounouchi," Yami insisted, "You're lonely, I _want_ you, and here we both are in this bed." The spirit certainly did make a good point, backed by some really good persuasive moves. The manner in which his eyes spoke to him was rather convincing on top of all of that.

"Come on, Jounouchi…" Yami teased, unbuttoning his pajama top and casting it to the floor. He leaned back down and pressed himself against the blonde's chest, pushing him onto his back.

"It's not right, Yugi," Jou uttered. His body wasn't listening to his brain, so his words were contradicting what his busy hands were doing. He was holding Yami down instead of pushing him away.

"I told you before…" the anxious boy whispered, centimeters from the blonde's ear, "_I'm not Yugi!_" He swiftly proved that by nipping at the ear gently.

"Uhnn…stop," Jou moaned through the tense air. Much to his surprise, Yami actually complied and propped himself up, still lurking over him. He stared at him, waiting for a reason.

"You don't want this?" the multi-colored hair boy blinked.

"No…I do, but not for good reasons, and I am not even sure what 'this' is anyway…" He was hoping that it was only some minor groping and kissing, and not something Otogi-ish, just in case he did give in sometime over the night. The blonde slowly dropped his hands off of Yugi's back; "Can we just go to sleep?" He had gotten himself out of this one, hopefully. He couldn't just do something so immoral; it was his friend's body but not his friend in it, not to mention that for some unknown reason, he was still harboring feelings for Seto.

"All right, Jounouchi." Yami dismounted him, chest still bare, and went to rest on his side of the bed.

How would Jou explain the missing pajama top to Yugi in the morning?

* * *

I hope everyone enjoyed that little filler chapter. I'm curious to know if anyone has caught a running joke about patch fixes (and patches not always fixing a bug that they claim to be fixing). It may have looked like an inconsistency at first, but I assure everyone that it was definitely a jab at MMORPGs (those of you who have played these kinds of games should get it). =)

One chapter left.

Yami - I have to clear this one up here.

Throughout the story, we gradually learn that Yugi has feelings for Jounouchi, but we don't know how deep they run (unfortunately, this has nothing to do with Yami's own feelings). Somewhere in the beginning of the fic, Jounouchi makes reference to loving the confident look in Yami's eyes, of course we still don't understand _why_. It's -very- lightly implied that Yami has always looked at him in that way (_very_ lightly). Now, in **Chapter 8**, there is a reference to Yami's true feelings. Jou is in the changing booth, and Yami pokes his head on. Jou scolds him, and Yami informs him that he wished that he had waited until Jou had his pants completely off.

All questions regarding my side story (referring to Yami) will be answered in third installment of said story. =)

-Zelia Theb


	11. XI: Remedy for Frostbite

Disclaimers are the same for all chapters.

This is it. The **Final Chapter**! Be sure to check out Behind the Pixels; a series of side stories to this fic.

****

--------------

"Jounouchi!"

"Jounouchi!"

The swirling blue mist faded into black.

"JOUNOUCHI! Would you get up already!"

Jou perked right up after having the anonymous voice yell right in his ear, and smacked his head into the owner of that voice.

"Ack! Sorry Yug, I didn't realize that you were right there!" Jou apologized, rubbing his forehead to get rid of the minor pain.

"You have to go downstairs right now!" Yugi yelled in a scolding manner. It was actually terrifying to have a short and normally cheery kid start screaming at him, especially when he was dressed in all black and biker belts.

"Wha..? Can't I get dressed?" the blonde protested as Yugi forcefully grabbed his wrist and pulled him out from under the blankets.

"Hurry up!" Yugi scowled, his hands placed on his hips impatiently. He ran off to the sink and returned with a toothbrush and toothpaste. He handed Jou the items, even though the sleepy boy was still struggling with his white shirt and blue jeans, and barked, "Don't forget to brush your teeth! Hurry up! We have to go back downstairs NOW!"

"Yer sparee," Jou mumbled as he furiously brushed is teeth. What he meant to say was, 'You're scary.' Yugi pushed him out of his room, urging him to walk faster to the sink.

"You're done! Let's go," the short and scary boy said. He grabbed Jou's hand and ran downstairs. Jou stumbled and choked on his own saliva, wondering what the hell was up with his friend.

"Yugi…what's going on?" Jou asked, ruffling his hair a bit.

"GET YOUR SHOES ON!" The blonde could swear that Yugi suddenly grew fangs, red wings, and a pointed tail.

"What about my jacket?! You're taking me outside, aren't you?" He scrambled to slip his sneakers on.

"Okay," Yugi sighed, "Now let's go outside." The short boy somehow expelled the evil demon that had taken over his body and lead Jou into the store and outside. The store wasn't open that day, so Yugi's grandfather and mother were out shopping.

"What's…what's going on here?" Jou demanded. Seto Kaiba was standing outside, wearing all black, and of course a trench coat.

"Why don't you tell me, Jounouchi?" Yugi replied, "Kaiba comes here and suddenly wants to talk you?"

"Yugi," Kaiba said sternly, "Just stay out of this."

"I'll be inside then. The store needs to be organized for tomorrow." The shortest boy opened the glass door of the game shop and left Jou and Kaiba alone outside.

"You can't log off on me this time," the brunette stated.

Jounouchi shivered from the chilly breeze. There was a light layer of snow covering the ground. He sniffled, "I can't."

"Come here," Kaiba stepped forward, wrapping his arms around the shivering boy, "You'll catch a cold."

"Let me go, Kaiba," Jou protested. He made no move to escape. It was very warm and comforting to be held by Seto; he could not deny that he was protected from the cold.

"No." The wind picked up again, making the long coat flow away from the brunette's legs. He tightened the embrace in reaction to the gust.

"Kaiba…" It was no use. He would have to push himself away and run into Yugi's house now.

* * *

It was his only chance. After this moment he might not get another. He couldn't care less who was around, even though it was a rather bleak and boring day. He brought his hand up to Jounouchi's hair, rubbing his head affectionately, and preparing to tilt it upward.

And he slipped away.

Katsuya had tightened up and slipped down to abscond into the game shop.

"No," Seto muttered. He soon found himself chasing the blonde inside, surprising Yugi. Jounouchi jumped over an unopened box on the floor and fled inside the house, slamming the door behind him. Seto gripped onto the handle a second too late; and he wasn't about to run inside Yugi's home uninvited.

"Katsuya!" the tall boy yelled, pounding his right fist on the door, "Katsuya!" He began to feel the snow he kicked up melt into his pants and through his socks. It only made him shiver more.

"Go away!" Jou yelled through the door. At least he was still _there_. It had to mean something, didn't it?

Was this really it? Did Jounouchi truly hate him? Were his actions indeed unforgivable?

It hurt too much. He wasn't going to give up.

"No, I won't leave," he spoke through the door, letting his forehead rest on it. He unfurled his fist and placed his palms on the door, acting as if the door itself was Jounouchi.

"Why are you bothering Jounouchi, Kaiba?" Yugi asked from behind him. The tone was demanding and angry. Seto merely turned his head slowly, never removing it from the door, and looked at him. His eyes were sad, and lacking the usual condescending glare. He figured that was a good enough answer for the annoying punk, and gazed back at the door.

"Katsuya, open the door." He wondered if the boy was even able to hear him that time, he had barely managed to say the words. He was choking back another fit of sadness, not for Jounouchi's sake, but because he didn't want Yugi to see him tear up.

He heard some sort of noise from beyond the obstacle. He wasn't sure if Jou had replied, or was crying. Perhaps his hearing all together was off and the boy had walked away, leaving him about to talk to himself.

"Katsuya, you told me not to hide behind the monitor, so I came to see you," Seto somberly rationalized, "But now you are the one hiding." There was silence. The brunette listened, hoping for some indication that the boy was still just beyond the few inches of hinged wood. He heard a minor shuffle, and continued, "I'm sorry. Just open the door so I that can tell you."

He waited for a few moments, but the door never opened. He winced, forcing the welled up tears to trickle down his cheeks. Seto wiped them away quickly, before turning around to leave.

It was time to give up.

There was no point in trying. His jealousy had driven him to hurt Katsuya time and time again, whether it be indirectly through his friends or by directly insulting him. Would this be how it would be forever? He would always be alone. He damned himself to this life when he decided to construct that icy shield of his. Not only that, he had probably passed this type of attitude on to Mokuba, who would in turn live a lonely and bitter life if he didn't turn around now. What a wonderful role model he had become.

There would be no one to share his wealth with. No one to take care of him when he needed to be taken care of. Just one bitter old man with a nice resume.

Seto swallowed a large gulp of air and walked for the door. He glared at Yugi, sending the short kid a signal to shut up and not make some defending or intrusive comment as he usually might do.

It had started snowing outside again. Little tufts of snowflakes were kicked up as Seto hurried to reach the car that he had wait for him. It was around the block, out of the way as he didn't want to act like he was pushing his wealth in the poor blonde's face.

Strangely enough, he didn't feel like going inside the warm automobile once he made it there. He instructed the driver to head back without him. He wanted to torture himself in the cold a bit longer.

It felt…justified. He could stay out all day and suffer whatever consequences the cold had on his body. He would stop crying so his face couldn't feel the heat from his tears. A suitable punishment.

Of course Katsuya wasn't a dog. Sure, his hair was a little messy, and his loyalty was comparable. It wasn't nice at any rate. Seto had even gone so far as to label him a low rank duelist on a computer network when his Battle City Tournament kicked off, despite the fact that he was a finalist at Duelist Kingdom.

When he thought of it, maybe he had always liked the rowdy teen. He had always found him attractive, and was drawn to him in a strange way. He remembered wondering the same thing back when he had disappeared from Marik's thugs. He couldn't figure out then why it had worried him, but now it was coming together.

The thoughts made it all the more painful, which spurred him to think them in endless circles. He was enjoying the misery, as strange as that may seem. He felt like he would no longer be human if he _didn't_, and after all he had done in his past, that line wasn't so far away.

Before he knew it, he had ended up back in that same park, overlooking that same empty fountain, and leaning on that same cold railing.

* * *

Well, he had done it.

He had effectively driven away everyone that he cared about.

He didn't even live with his mother and Shizuka, just with some drunk of a father who only acknowledged his existence when he was angry or needed more beer. Otogi was still angry about getting punched in the face, not to mention mad about Nymphe's exit from Radiant Eclipse. Bakura just followed like a lemming. Yugi was on his way out; he would find out what happened between he and Yami soon enough, and he already sensed some jealousy over Kaiba. He could eventually find a way to drive Honda away, and Anzu really didn't matter. She just came with the Yugi package. And then…

There was him. Seto Kaiba.

He had always envied him. Kaiba was able to rise from destruction of his family and reach his full potential. He was able to see his younger sibling _every day_. His grades were excellent, and he never let anything get to him.

He wiped his nose with his finger as he walked on. Jou had no idea where he was heading, only that he couldn't stay at Yugi's house and get grilled. He didn't want to have something stupid happen with that crazy other personality and get rid of both halves of Yugi.

Kaiba still sat in his head. He was strong, physically and mentally, and hot to boot. Jounouchi always had a secret attraction to the tall blue-eyed brunette, then again, who didn't? Physically, Kaiba was stunning, and _perfect_. If Jou had even half of the boy's looks, maybe the girls would have paid much more attention to him.

Disregarding his hatred for him, Jou actually pondered the events that occurred since they 'met'. Seto had so easily thrown everything away, and willingly rendered himself vulnerable in front of someone whom everyone _thought_ was his archenemy, just for him. The way that he held him earlier was so gentle, and his touch was loving yet needy.

Needy. Of course. Kaiba's life wasn't all that great, was it? He had discovered pieces of Seto's past, and it was just as tough as Jou's life, if not worse. Jounouchi had no one? Seto has his brother. That's it. And Katsuya had just made life even more miserable for the poor boy.

He knows what it's like to open up to people he thinks he can trust, only to have them be the ones to stab you with the biggest and sharpest blades. It's hard to trust and love again, and perhaps that is why it took him so long to warm up to Yugi and everyone else.

He had just done that to Seto. He was the one to open him back up, and he even led him on further by accepting his true gender. Then what did he do? He told him that he hated him and deserved every ounce of hurt that came his way. He forced him to come out, at risk to his company and his reputation, and then pushed him away.

Jounouchi decided then that he had to go back to Yugi's and sign on to the game. It might be the only way to talk to Kaiba. It was getting dark, and he was starting to the feel the cold through his thin knit gloves. On his way back, he passed the park that he had discovered the truth about Nymphe in, and saw a single figure standing at the railing, their long coat flapping in the breeze.

Had Seto been outside all this time? It had been seven hours since their encounter, and Jou had only left Yugi's in the last eighty minutes. He had to find out. Little wisps of air could barely be seen exiting the tall boy's mouth as is.

Katsuya took his gloves off and stuffed them in his pockets. He approached the lone boy slowly, noticing that he had both hands bare and gripping onto the metal guardrail. Jou walked to Seto's left, and placed his right hand on the brunette's left. It was chilling to the touch.

"You've been out here the whole time, haven't ya?" the blonde asked. He quickly spun the other boy around and took both of his numb hands to his chest. It was so like him, to wait for hours on end even if there was little hope. Just like Impy would do.

"Yes," Seto finally answered. His breathing was incredibly slow.

"Stupid…" Jou said, pulling the tall boy into him by his waist. He took his free hand and placed it on the side of Seto's face. His cheeks were rosy, but they were as icy as his hands. The color of his lips was starting to look a lot like his eyes.

"I.."

"We have to get you inside!" Jou scolded. His heart was pounding; how could Kaiba do something so idiotic?

"Let go," Seto meekly asked. The blonde unwrapped his arm, knowing that the request wasn't to ease his annoyance, but rather to get out of the way of his pockets. The frozen boy pulled out a cell phone and struggled to make his fingers press the button that he wanted. He finally succeeded and motioned for Jou to put it back, as his hands were to immobilized to do so.

Jounouchi continued his vain attempts to get Seto's hands warm for several moments. Neither of them seemed to care about the elderly couple that was passing by. A black limousine soon pulled up in a side street near the park; Jou assumed that the phone had some sort of tracking system integrated into it. He helped the frozen boy in his arms inside the car, then sat down himself.

The cushions were comfortable and upholstered in black leather. There were climate controls everywhere, and even a mini-fridge under one of the seats. All of the lavish features, aside from the climate control, meant nothing to the blonde. He stared at the controls and turned on the heat once he had deciphered them. He took his own jacket off and covered Seto with it like a blanket. The car had already started moving, and he assumed that they were heading toward the brunette's prestigious home.

"What were you thinking?" Jounouchi asked, laying his head on Seto's left shoulder. He slipped his hands under the jacket and gripped onto Seto's once more.

"I wasn't," the cold boy honestly replied. It actually brought a wry smile to both of their faces.

The rest of the ride, they were silent. Jou had nothing going through his head, except for the warm feeling that he was getting just by caressing the other boy's hands. Finally, after ten long minutes, they arrived at the mansion's doorstep. The two exited the car, which pulled away right after. He was surprised that a chauffeur hadn't come to assist them.

"Seto!" Mokuba cried through the door. The teen had gotten taller since Jounouchi last saw him. He ran outside in his slippers to help the blonde walk Seto indoors. Without words, they both assisted Seto up to his room.

Katsuya took in the ornate interior of the estate. The ceiling was so tall that even someone like Seto could feel as tiny as an insect. It probably added to the desolate feeling inside of the young businessman. Several stairs and stumbles later, the trio entered Seto's colossal room and set him down on the canopy bed.

"I can do it," Seto lightly scowled at Mokuba, who was trying to be a polite brother and remove his shoes and coat for him.

"Okay," the adolescent sighed. He looked up at Jou, who took that as a sign to leave Seto be, as much as he didn't want to. The young boy announced, "I'll go get some tea and a bowl of hot water." He ran to the grand doorway, but stopped to say, "Thanks Jounouchi."

"You don't have to, Mokuba," Seto uttered, "Just have them bring two cups of tea back instead of one."

"He's…staying?" Mokuba questioned, seeming not to understand the situation.

"Mokuba…" the elder brother sternly stated. The boy quickly left and gently closed the door obediently.

"It's late…" the blonde said, still standing next to the bed dumbfoundedly, "I should go back to Yu.."

"Call him," Seto uttered, producing the phone from his pants' pocket and tossing it to the side. He was laying on his back and snug under the covers already.

Jounouchi picked up the phone and dialed Yugi's number, not sure of what to say. Had Seto implied that he wanted him to stay the night? Or did he just want him to stay a while longer?

"Sit," the laid up boy commanded. Jou figured that he was annoyed with his pacing back and forth, so he complied with the request and sat down on the edge of the bed.

__

"Hello?"

"Ah, Yugi…umm, I just wanted to tell you that I'm fine." He swallowed hard, wondering exactly why he had called in the first place.

__

"Hmm? Why wouldn't you be? Where are you?"

"I'm at…Kaiba's." Jou heard Seto deeply exhale, so he glanced back and saw the brunette's blue eyes fixated on him. The stare was full of sorrow, which confused him.

__

"Kaiba's? Have you been there this whole time?"

"No…" He tapped his fingers on the indigo blankets; "I just got here."

__

_"Why did you call? Are you staying there tonight?"_ Yugi's voice sounded angry and impatient.

"Am…I staying?" Jou repeated. Kaiba suddenly grabbed onto the moving fingers, signaling the answer to that question. Jou nudged his shoes off with his feet and replied, "I couldn't really tell ya right now, Yug."

There was a slight knock and the bedroom door opened again. A well-dressed butler brought in a silver tray that had a two cups and a teapot on it, and set it on the nightstand opposite of Jou. He began pouring tea out of the pot, but Seto waved a hand up, letting the servant know that was enough.

__

"Can you tell me everything else then, Jounouchi?"

Seto sat up wearily and poured the rest of the tea into the cups. His hands weren't working well though, so some of it spilled onto the silver tray. Jou giggled a bit and the brunette looked back at him with a scowling gaze.

"Yeah, whatever you want to know I can tell ya bud," Jou answered with a smile. He found Seto's sudden urge to be self-reliant adorable. He brought his legs up onto the bed, getting more comfortable.

__

"Kaiba is Nymphe, right?"

Seto winced, apparently burning his mouth on the hot tea. He quickly set the cup down and went back under the covers. Was he pouting? Jou smirked at him and grasped his hand again, tracing his thumb over the pink knuckles.

__

"Jounouchi?"

"Sorry Yug," the boy apologized, his eyes fixated on Seto's, "Yeah. Promise not to say anything, okay?"

Yugi sighed and reluctantly answered, _"Yeah, I understand. I promise!"_

Katsuya watched as Seto's eyelids struggled to stay open. Instead of letting Yugi continue, he interrupted, "Hey, Yug, listen. I'll tell ya more tomorrow. Just don't wait up for me." Yugi confirmed that and Jou turned the cell phone off and placed it on the nearest nightstand.

Seto was falling asleep. Jou turned over and placed his left palm on the boy's forehead, searching for a fever. He played with the perfect strands of hair before pulling his hand away; he wondered if he was the first person to really mess them up.

"Are you still cold?" he whispered, not entirely sure if the taller one was still awake. He yawned himself at the sight of Seto lying there innocently. All of the stress over the last few days had exhausted him too.

"Yes," was the slight reply. The brunette turned on his side, facing Jou completely, his eyes still closed.

Jounouchi had to do something to warm up his…boyfriend? He adjusted his position and slid underneath the blankets with him, lacing one arm underneath one of the very fluffy pillows and the other around Kaiba's waist. He actually saw Seto smile; his lips having returned to their normal color.

"You don't have a fever…you're lucky," Jou uttered, "You could have gotten hypoglycemia." He was shocked when Seto's eyes shot open, almost like he was a zombie that had just risen from the dead.

"Hypothermia," Seto corrected, using his normal condescending tone that everyone was used to. His eyes slowly shut again.

"It was still stupid of ya," Jou retorted. He felt another yawn coming on, and gradually, his eyes began to close as well.

"Katsuya," Seto murmured, "I'll go back to the guild." He turned on his own side to face Jounouchi, and returned the loving hold.

"Will ya?" Jou replied, tingling from the feeling of Seto's hand on his hip. He opened his eyes again and remarked, "They'll like that." He was tired, but it was refreshing to have a normal conversation with Seto Kaiba, face to face even.

* * *

"Eventually they will discover who I am…"

"That doesn't matter."

The statement lifted a minor weight off of Seto's chest. There was tons of it left there, and one of the heaviest issues was the distance between himself and Katsuya at that moment.

He wanted to kiss him so badly. The pent up emotion from the weeks of not being able to do so over the game was immense. The conflict over the last few days has not helped either. He wanted to make things up to him. It was clear from the look in the boy's brown eyes that he wanted the same.

The technique came naturally to Seto. His tongue pierced into the blonde's mouth at a languid pace, taking in the taste and savoring the moment. It wasn't a rushed movement, as he didn't want to give the boy the wrong impression. He was a gentleman, and he also didn't want Jounouchi to run off on him again.

He cursed his body for needing air.

"You taste like candy," Seto uttered. He was surprised that he still remembered the flavor; he had given up such things long ago. Perhaps it was time to revert back to his own age.

"That was nice…" Jounouchi replied. The boy closed his eyes again, his face permanently bearing a pleasant smile. He nuzzled his nose into Seto's neck, tickling the brunette's nose with his hair. He wrinkled it a bit and successfully held back a sneeze.

Seto felt Katsuya's breath against his neck. It was slow, revealing that the warm boy had fallen into a slumber. It was a rather wearisome day on both of their minds. It was time for his first serene rest since Joukatsu and Nymphe had met. Seto's body and breathing rhythm came into tune with the one in his arms and he gradually allowed himself fall asleep.

****

---The End---

--------------

Thank you, my loyal readers, for all of the support and feedback you've given me. I can't express enough how happy you've all made me during the course of this fic. Please continue to support me and read some more Zelia Theb fics! I would love to write more for everyone.

I am uncertain if I want to make any sort of sequel at this point in time. I am leaning towards keeping it as is. If anyone is interested - I _do_ have side stories up. Just click on my profile and head to Behind the Pixels to read them. If anyone has any requests for a side story, feel free to do so! My e-mail addresses are also in my profile.

At the moment I am working on _Yu Yu Hakusho_ fics; I just posted a one-shot titled Strawberry Licorice, and am working on one called Alternate Universe. I also have most of the third side story of Behind the Pixels completed. So keep an eye out!

-Zelia Theb


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